PART ONE

Directions: This is an experiment on people’s use of language. We would like to know your intuitive reaction to the naturalness of various words seem in various sentences. Your task is to rate how natural the verb seems in each past tense form, 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 to Boston” calls for a high rating (around 7), whereas the sentence “He comed home to Boston” 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 verb and a low rating to the other, or vice-versa, or high ratings to both, or low ratings to both, depending on how they strike you.

Please pay attention 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 verbs feels to you than in your guess as to what is “proper” or “correct.”

1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1a. After working up his courage, the boy dived off the board for the first time.

1b. After working up his courage, the boy dove off the board for the first time.

2a. The whole town showed up yesterday when the sheriff hanged the horse thief.

2b. The whole town showed up yesterday when the sheriff hung the horse thief.

3a. Last Christmas, Angela knitted a present for her father.

3b. Last Christmas, Angela knit a present for her father.

4a. The sun shined brightly during last week’s annual soccer picnic.

4b. The sun shone brightly during last week’s annual soccer picnic.

5a. At yesterday’s hearing, the defendant pled innocent.

5b. At yesterday’s hearing, the defendant pleaded innocent.

6a. The congregation quickly kneeled as soon as the organ began to play.

6b. The congregation quickly knelt as soon as the organ began to play.

7a. Yesterday night, I dreamt that I had left the house in my pajamas.

7b. Yesterday night, I dreamed that I had left the house in my pajamas.

8a. Expressing her frustration, Sally heaved her arms in the air with a sigh.

8b. Expressing her frustration, Sally hove her arms in the air with a sigh.

9a. When I was a teenager, I snuck out of the house on weekends without my parents knowing.

9b. When I was a teenager, I sneaked out of the house on weekends without my parents knowing.

10a. When I first started a new school, I strove to make friends.

10b. When I first started a new school, I strived to make friends.

11a. Last winter a fire always burned in the hearth to keep the house warm.

11b. Last winter a fire always burnt in the hearth to keep the house warm.

12a. Spot leapt over the fence when he heard another dog barking.

12b. Spot leaped over the fence when he heard another dog barking.

13a. Meredith’s face lighted with happiness last week when her boyfriend visited.

13b. Meredith’s face lit with happiness last week when her boyfriend visited.

14a. They said it was impossible, but Sally has definitely proven Hilbert’s last theorem.

14b. They said it was impossible, but Sally has definitely proved Hilbert’s last theorem.

15a. Mom has sewed a new quilt for the craft fair.

15b. Mom has sewn a new quilt for the craft fair.

16a. My grandmother wove the tapestry covering my bedroom wall.

16b. My grandmother weaved the tapestry covering my bedroom wall.

	1 = very unnatural - 7 = very natural
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
1a. After working up his courage, the boy dived off the board for the first time.
1b. After working up his courage, the boy dove off the board for the first time.
2a. The whole town showed up yesterday when the sheriff hanged the horse thief.
2b. The whole town showed up yesterday when the sheriff hung the horse thief.
3a. Last Christmas, Angela knitted a present for her father.
3b. Last Christmas, Angela knit a present for her father.
4a. The sun shined brightly during last week’s annual soccer picnic.
4b. The sun shone brightly during last week’s annual soccer picnic.
5a. At yesterday’s hearing, the defendant pled innocent.
5b. At yesterday’s hearing, the defendant pleaded innocent.
6a. The congregation quickly kneeled as soon as the organ began to play.
6b. The congregation quickly knelt as soon as the organ began to play.
7a. Yesterday night, I dreamt that I had left the house in my pajamas.
7b. Yesterday night, I dreamed that I had left the house in my pajamas.
8a. Expressing her frustration, Sally heaved her arms in the air with a sigh.
8b. Expressing her frustration, Sally hove her arms in the air with a sigh.
9a. When I was a teenager, I snuck out of the house on weekends without my parents knowing.
9b. When I was a teenager, I sneaked out of the house on weekends without my parents knowing.
10a. When I first started a new school, I strove to make friends.
10b. When I first started a new school, I strived to make friends.
11a. Last winter a fire always burned in the hearth to keep the house warm.
11b. Last winter a fire always burnt in the hearth to keep the house warm.
12a. Spot leapt over the fence when he heard another dog barking.
12b. Spot leaped over the fence when he heard another dog barking.
13a. Meredith’s face lighted with happiness last week when her boyfriend visited.
13b. Meredith’s face lit with happiness last week when her boyfriend visited.
14a. They said it was impossible, but Sally has definitely proven Hilbert’s last theorem.
14b. They said it was impossible, but Sally has definitely proved Hilbert’s last theorem.
15a. Mom has sewed a new quilt for the craft fair.
15b. Mom has sewn a new quilt for the craft fair.
16a. My grandmother wove the tapestry covering my bedroom wall.
16b. My grandmother weaved the tapestry covering my bedroom wall.