PART ONE
Directions: This is an experiment on people’s use of language. We will show you various words and want to know your intuitive reaction to how natural or acceptable they seem in various sentences. You will see sets of three sentences. The first sentence contains the verb we are interested in; it explains the sense of the verb that we have in mind. The next two sentences contain the same verb in the past tense, but with a different version of the past-tense form in each sentence. Your task is to rate how natural the verb strikes you as the past tense of the novel verb, using a scale of 1 to 7, where 1 means ‘very unnatural’ and 7 means ‘very natural.’ For example, most people would judge that the sentence “He came home” calls for a high rating (around 7), whereas the sentence “He comed home” calls for a low rating (around 1). In this example, one version of the past-tense form sounds perfect to most people and the other one sounds terrible. But that need not be true of every verb. For example, to many people, the sentence “She dreamed that she was falling out of a plane” is fairly natural, but so is “She dreamt that she was falling out of a plane.” If that is your reaction for one of the items in the questionnaire, you should give high ratings to both of the test sentences for that item. In other words, you can give a high rating to one past-tense form and a low rating to the other, or vice-versa, or high ratings to both, or low ratings to both, depending on how they sound.

Please pay attention to how the verb is being used, and rate how the entire sentence strikes you, not merely the verb itself. For example, while both “hung” and “hanged” are acceptable forms of the past tense “hang,” the sentence “She hung the painting,” sounds more natural than the sentence “She hanged the painting.” But to some people, the sentence “He hanged the criminal” sounds more natural than the sentence “He hung the criminal.” That is why we want you to think about how the verb is being used when you make your judgments. So please pay attention both to the way the new verb is used in the example and to the way it sounds. We are more interested in how natural the verb forms feel to you than in your guess as to what is “proper” or “correct.”

1. There are severe penalties in college basketball for throwing games to benefit gamblers.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. Charlie was banned from the game for life when he throwed a key game last month.
b. Charlie was banned from the game for life when he threw a key game last month.
2. Though many people summer in the Hamptons and winter in the Bahamas, everyone knows that Florida is the best place spend the spring.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. That’s why the Worthingtons wintered in Nassau and springed in Miami.
b. That’s why the Worthingtons wintered in Nassau and sprang in Miami.
3. I find that video games are a good way to blow off steam.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. After three solid days of studying, blowed off some steam by playing five round of Mortal Kombat.
b. After three solid days of studying, blew off some steam by playing five round of Mortal Kombat.
4. It takes a lot of endurance to split logs.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. I felt pretty sore after I splitted a month’s supply of logs last week.
b. I felt pretty sore after I split a month’s supply of logs last week.
5. The annual Five-Alarm BBQ sauce competition looks for the sauce with the most bite.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. This year Blowtorch Red Hot Sauce out-bited the competition and earned first prize.
b. This year Blowtorch Red Hot Sauce out-bit the competition and earned first prize.
6. The thought of other people wiping their noses and then holding the poles in the subway really gives me the creeps.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. So on the subway this morning I had to lean on strangers, because the idea of touching the pole just creeped me out.
b. So on the subway this morning I had to lean on strangers, because the idea of touching the pole just crept me out.
7. I’m famous for throwing lively parties on weekends.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. Last Saturday, I throwed a party that got so loud that the police came to break it up.
b. Last Saturday, I threw a party that got so loud that the police came to break it up.
8. I’ve had a banana split every day this week, and I couldn’t possibly eat another one.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. I’m completely splitted out.
b. I’m completely split out.
9. When driving his Camaro, Biff would often take the curves quickly.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. His last accident took place when he taked Dead Man’s Curve too fast.
b. His last accident took place when he took Dead Man’s Curve too fast.
10. The first step in a police investigation is to find suspects that fits an eyewitness’s description.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. Sgt. O’Malley arrested Emily because she fitted the description perfectly.
b. Sgt. O’Malley arrested Emily because she fit the description perfectly.
11. Karnak the lion tamer used severe methods to bend the animals to his will.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. Last week, he bended a Bengal tiger into submission with a whip and a chair.
b. Last week, he bent a Bengal tiger into submission with a whip and a chair.
12. Customers often choose cars by the prestige of their make and model, but the "Oldsmobile" make is now seen as stodgy, so GM changed the official make of the Cutlass without redesigning the car itself.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. Now that they have remaked the car, it is called the XXtreme Cutlass.
b. Now that they have remade it, it is called the XXtreme Cutlass.
13. This new improved mousetrap springs shut if the slightest pressure is applied to it.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. It’s better at catching baby mice, but last night it springed shut on my finger when I tried to load the bait.
b. It’s better at catching baby mice, but last night it sprang shut on my finger when I tried to load the bait.
14. Students often get into trouble if they bite off more than they can chew.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. That’s what happened to me: I bited off more than I could chew when I signed up for the seven classes.
b. That’s what happened to me: I bit off more than I could chew when I signed up for the seven classes.
15. My lifelong dream is to throw the first pitch at a Cubs game.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. I am getting in practice--last year I throwed the first pitch for my brother’s little league game.
b. I am getting in practice--last year I threw the first pitch for my brother’s little league game.
16. I wanted to split from the party as soon as I arrived.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. So after an hour of polite small talk, I splitted unnoticed.
b. So after an hour of polite small talk, I split unnoticed.
17. The ads always say, don’t leave home without taking your American Express card.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. I always do what the ads say, and even taked it with me to the Twisted Sister concert.
b. I always do what the ads say, and even took it with me to the Twisted Sister concert.
18. When I’m depressed, it doesn’t take much to make my day.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. Yesterday, I found a quarter on the sidewalk, and it really maked my day.
b. Yesterday, I found a quarter on the sidewalk, and it really made my day.
19. The toughest part of white-water rafting is negotiating sharp bends.
1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
a. Madison hit the shore on her first three tries, but on her fourth try she bended the river with ease.
b. Madison hit the shore on her first three tries, but on her fourth try she bent the river with ease.



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