Language Variation Survey
This is a survey of regional variation in North American English, conducted as part of the course LING 320, Sociolinguistics 1, at McGill University, in Montreal, Canada. Its main purpose is to teach students about language variation and data collection. Your participation is entirely voluntary and you may withdraw from participation at any time. Because students will receive course credit for each response they collect, you are asked to provide your name and contact information for verification purposes only. This information will remain confidential, available only to the student who collected it and the course instructor, and will never be published in connection with your responses. Your responses may be used, without your name or contact information, in combination with responses from other participants, in future presentations or publications about the results of the survey. Participants must be at least 18 years of age. By filling out the survey, you acknowledge acceptance of these terms. If you have any questions or concerns about this survey, you may contact the course instructor, Prof. C. Boberg, at charles.boberg@mcgill.ca, tel. 514-398-4869, or Lynda McNeil, McGill’s Research Ethics Officer, at lynda.mcneil@mcgill.ca, or 514-398-6831. Thank you for helping this student learn about language variation!
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Participant Name *
First Last (pseudonyms are fine!)
Tel. or email *
**Pseudonyms are okay, but please put valid contact info or else don't do the survey! I cannot submit results without verification info. Thank you :)
PART A: DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION
Year of Birth *
Sex *
Are you a native speaker of English? *
English does not have to be your first language/mother tongue; if it's your primary language or you identify it as your native language that is fine.
Place(s) I grew up (ages 4-17; please give town or city and province, state or country) *
Place I now live *
My primary ethnic ancestry *
Highest level of education achieved *
Languages spoken fluently, other than English *
PART B: VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS
The following questions feature words and expressions that vary across North America, with variants listed in alphabetical order. Please choose the word or expression you would use most often in your everyday speech. If the word you would normally use is not listed, please feel free to write it in.
A year of school before kindergarten
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A length of rope that children jump over in a schoolyard game
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A pay structure built for climbing in a park or schoolyard
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Pencils with colored leads for drawing
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A small, circular length of rubber used for holding things together
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The store where you can fill a medical prescription and buy general merchandise
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A brief contagious illness that causes diarrhea and/or vomiting
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Very fine sugar used in baking and pastry
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Cleaning fluid for dishes
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A long, belted garment worn over pajamas or underwear
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A sweatshirt-like garment with front pockets and a hood
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A brimless, close-fitting, woollen or knit hat for cold weather
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A women's garment combining top and shorts in one piece
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An orange rubber or plastic cone for redirecting traffic
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An enclosed pedestrian bridge between buildings
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A building for firefighting staff and equipment
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A vehicle used to put out fire and rescue people
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PART C: PRONUNCIATION
Pronunciation of the following words in quotation marks ("example") varies across North America. Please say each word to yourself and choose the capitalized word or syllable that best represents the sound you would use most often in your everyday speech.
Does the "bis-" of "bistro" sound like:
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Does "bury" (as in a corpse or treasure) rhyme with:
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Does "catch" (as in a ball or a cold) rhyme with:
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Does the "cli-" or "clientele" sound like:
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Is the "decal" (as in a sticker) pronounced as:
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Does the "ec-" of "economic" or "economical" sound like:
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Does the "en-" of envelope sound like:
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Does "figure" sound like:
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Does the "gour-" of "gourmet" sound like:
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Do you pronounce the initial "h" of "herb" and "herbal"?
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Does the "Mon-" or "Montreal" sound like:
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Does the "-niz-" part of "organization" sound like:
I personally do say both, I say "joining an organ-NIZE-ation" but NIZZ in all other contexts so I've included an option for it here
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Does the "pres-" of "presentation" sound like:
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Does the "-wan" of "Saskatchewan" have the vowel of:
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Does "suggest" sound like:
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Does the "-th-" sound of "with" sound like the "th-" of:
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Does the "-th-" sound of "without" sound like the "th-" of:
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Does "Quebec", said in English, sound like:
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