Vocabulary Terminology Quiz

A TEFL quiz for TEFL teachers

You can do this quiz online or print it on paper. It tests your understanding of terms in the TEFL Glossary that are related to vocabulary.

1. The term "slang" refers to ______ vocabulary used by particular groups such as teenagers, gay people, rap musicians, etc.

incorrect
impolite
informal
a) incorrect b) impolite c) informal

2. Which includes an idiom?

I was making you laugh
I was pulling your leg
I was telling a joke
a) I was making you laugh b) I was pulling your leg c) I was telling a joke

3. Overused expressions that are considered to weaken written English are called

sayings
clichés
collocations
a) sayings b) clichés c) collocations

4. A "chunk" is any string of words with a specific meaning that's learned and understood in the way a single word is, such as

all of a sudden
Tom suddenly said
all much too sudden
a) all of a sudden b) Tom suddenly said c) all much too sudden

5. Which is an interjection?

You're welcome
Are you ready?
Look out!
a) You're welcome b) Are you ready? c) Look out!

6. The term "onomatopoeia" refers to words that ________ the thing they represent.

sound like
look like
feel like
a) sound like b) look like c) feel like

7. Which term refers to the tendency for certain words to appear together, as in spend time and study hard?

collocation
colloquial
convergence
a) collocation b) colloquial c) convergence

8. Which is a simile?

ice-cold
as cold as ice
ice is as cold
a) ice-cold b) as cold as ice c) ice is as cold

9. "To pass away" is a euphemism for

to live
to die
to leave
a) to live b) to die c) to leave

10. If words are synonyms, they have the same or very similar

spellings
pronunciations
meanings
a) spellings b) pronunciations c) meanings

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