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 21 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.In a story, a farmer says, "We're fixing to plant the corn." What does the way he speaks show?
  • A.A spelling mistake by the author
  • B.How people talk in his part of the country
  • C.That the farmer is not telling the truth
2.Which word names how formal or informal language is for a situation?
  • A.register
  • B.dialect
  • C.rhyme
3.When you write a school report, which variety of English should you use?
  • A.Text-message shorthand
  • B.The dialect you use with friends
  • C.Standard English in a formal register
4.Which shows a difference between spoken and written English?
  • A.Writing is always formal
  • B.Speech can trail off; writing usually finishes the thought
  • C.Speech uses more commas
5.Which sentence is in a formal register?
  • A.I would be grateful if you could reply soon.
  • B.Get back to me!
  • C.Write back soon, OK?
6.The narrator writes in standard English, but the characters speak in dialect. Why?
  • A.So the characters' voices sound different from the narrator's
  • B.The author changed their mind halfway
  • C.Because the narrator is not allowed to speak
7.In a poem, the speaker says "I ain't got no fear of the dark." Why might the poet write it this way?
  • A.To give the speaker a real, local voice
  • B.Because the poet does not know grammar
  • C.To show the poem is a list
8.Which is a dialect difference rather than an error?
  • A.Spelling "their" as "there"
  • B."I might could help" in some Southern US varieties
  • C.Forgetting the capital letter at the start of a sentence

LessonPrint · L.5.3 · Set 21 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Varieties of English

Set 21. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.How people talk in his part of the country
  2. 2.register
  3. 3.Standard English in a formal register
  4. 4.Speech can trail off; writing usually finishes the thought
  5. 5.I would be grateful if you could reply soon.
  6. 6.So the characters' voices sound different from the narrator's
  7. 7.To give the speaker a real, local voice
  8. 8."I might could help" in some Southern US varieties

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