Monday, May 30, 2005

The Dialect Survey asked 122 questions to determine "an accurate picture of how English is used." This page lists the questions with links to maps of the responses to questions like:

What do you call the long sandwich that contains cold cuts, lettuce, and so on?

What do you call the thing from which you might drink water in a school? (The correct answer is, of course, a. bubbler.)

Which of these terms do you prefer for a sale of unwanted items on your porch, in your yard, etc.? (I've never heard of it before, but from now on I'm using Jumble.)