Skip to content
LessonPrint

Varieties of English is a free printable Grade 5 English worksheet on recognizing dialect and register differences, aligned to Common Core standard L.5.3. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 2 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

Next set

One paper per student

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425

Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Varieties of English

L.5.3

NameDate

Circle the right answer.

1.What is a dialect?
  • A.A mistake in spelling
  • B.A form of a language spoken in one place or by one group
  • C.A kind of poem
2.Which is a dialect difference rather than an error?
  • A.Forgetting the capital letter at the start of a sentence
  • B."I might could help" in some Southern US varieties
  • C.Spelling "their" as "there"
3.In a story, a farmer says, "We're fixing to plant the corn." What does the way he speaks show?
  • A.That the farmer is not telling the truth
  • B.A spelling mistake by the author
  • C.How people talk in his part of the country
4.The narrator writes in standard English, but the characters speak in dialect. Why?
  • A.The author changed their mind halfway
  • B.Because the narrator is not allowed to speak
  • C.So the characters' voices sound different from the narrator's
5.Which word names how formal or informal language is for a situation?
  • A.dialect
  • B.rhyme
  • C.register
6.When you write a school report, which variety of English should you use?
  • A.The dialect you use with friends
  • B.Text-message shorthand
  • C.Standard English in a formal register
7.Which shows a difference between spoken and written English?
  • A.Speech uses more commas
  • B.Writing is always formal
  • C.Speech can trail off; writing usually finishes the thought
8.In a play, one character says "Good day to you, sir" and another says "Hiya!" What does the difference show?
  • A.The two characters speak in different registers
  • B.They are speaking different languages
  • C.One of them has made a mistake

LessonPrint · L.5.3 · Set 2 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Varieties of English

Set 2. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.A form of a language spoken in one place or by one group
  2. 2."I might could help" in some Southern US varieties
  3. 3.How people talk in his part of the country
  4. 4.So the characters' voices sound different from the narrator's
  5. 5.register
  6. 6.Standard English in a formal register
  7. 7.Speech can trail off; writing usually finishes the thought
  8. 8.The two characters speak in different registers

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to L.5.3 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.