Infographic

The English Language

The estimated number of English speakers across the world.
1,453 million
Around 373 million are estimated to be ‘native speakers’.

171,146 Important Years

According to the
Oxford Dictionary
in 2018, there are
over 170,000 words
currently used in the
English language.
While this is more
than Chinese and
Spanish combined, it’s
a lot less than Italian,
Japanese, and Korean.

3rd
English ranks third
for highest number
of native speakers, 1066
behind Spanish and
In the year 1066, the Anglo-
Mandarin Chinese.
Saxons, who spoke Old English,
100% were defeated by French-speaking
Normans who then conquered
It is believed that England. Suddenly, the language
close to 100% of the
of the ruling classes became
people of Bermuda
French and Latin, and even
speak English as a
first language. This
today words derived from these
is higher than the UK languages are perceived as being
(97.3%) and Ireland more ‘formal’ than words derived
(98.4%). from Old English.

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 The English Language

1564

The future playwright William Shakespeare

was born in 1564. It is believed he created
many words and expressions still used today.

1607

In this year, the first permanent English settlement in North America

was founded. Called Jamestown, this settlement would be the first
of thousands across the Americas and later Oceania. Through
colonisation and trade, English would spread across the world into
countries such as India and Nigeria.

1755

Samuel Johnson published his Dictionary of the English Language

in 1755. While not the first English dictionary, it was one of the most
influential, using quotations to show words in full sentences for the
first time.

1806

Noah Webster released his American Dictionary of the English

Language in 1806. This book helped cement spelling differences
between British and American spellings that still exist today, with
Webster preferring more phonetic spellings such as ‘color’ and ‘center’.

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 The English Language

1989

The World Wide Web was invented in 1989,

and released to the public in 1991. English
would come to dominate, with it being
estimated that today 59% of websites are in
the language.

Fun Facts
English is considered a Germanic
language, because its origins
are from tribes that lived where
modern-day Germany is. However,
English has adopted many words
from other languages since
that time, and it shares similar
vocabulary with Latin languages
like French and Spanish.

Goodbye The longest English word in the dictionary has 45 letters

and is ‘Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis’.
‘Goodbye’
This word was invented to be the longest word, so it’s not
comes from an
Old English used in everyday speech very often!
expression, ‘God
be with you’.
Some people think ‘OK’ is a shortened version of ‘okay’,
Over many
years, it slowly
but actually ‘OK’ is older! Whatsmore, nobody even
shortened and knows what the ‘O’ and the ‘K’ stand for. It may have
changed to been a joke, with somebody misspelling ‘all correct’ as
‘goodbye’. ‘oll korrect’.

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 The English Language

Questions
Vocabulary Questions

1. What does 'estimated' mean in the context of the sentence: 'The estimated number of
English speakers across the world'?

2. Which does the word ‘perceived’ mean in the context of the sentence: 'Even today, words
derived from these languages are perceived as being more 'formal' than words derived
from Old English'?

3. What does the word 'cement' mean in the sentence: 'Noah Webster released his American
Dictionary of the English Language in 1806. This book helped cement spelling differences
between British and American spellings'?

4. Which does the word 'dominate' mean in the context of this sentence: 'English would
come to dominate, with it being estimated that today 59% of websites are in the
language'?

5. What does the word 'adopted' mean in the sentence: 'English has adopted many words
from other languages since that time'?

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 The English Language

Reading Comprehension Questions

1. In what year did the Normans conquer England and change the language spoken by the
ruling classes?

2. When was the first permanent English settlement in North America established?

3. Who is believed to have created many words and expressions still used today?

4. What is the significance of Noah Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language?

5. In what years was the World Wide Web invented and later released to the public?

Disclaimers: This resource has been made for the purpose of teaching English language learners. We know that students can be learning English in many different places, in many different ways and at age,
so we try to keep these resources as general as possible. There are many acronyms associated with English language teaching. These include (but are not limited to) ELT, TEFL, EFL, ELL, EAL and ESOL. While
the term ESL may not fully represent the linguistic backgrounds of all students, it is the most widely recognised term for English language teaching globally. Therefore, we use the term ‘ESL’ in the names of our
resources to make them easy to find but they are suitable for any student learning to speak English.

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 The English Language

Writing Questions

1. Why do you think English has become such a dominant language on the internet?

2. What impact do you think the spread of English through colonisation had on different

parts of the world?

3. Why do you think languages evolve and adopt words from other languages over time?

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 The English Language

Answers
Vocabulary Question Answers

1. What does 'estimated' mean in the context of the sentence: 'The estimated number of
English speakers across the world'?
'Estimated' means that it is not an exact figure.

2. Which does the word 'perceived as being' mean in the context of the sentence: 'Even today,
words derived from these languages are perceived as being more 'formal' than words
derived from Old English'?
‘Perceived as’ means ‘believed to be’. Here, it means people believe words from French
and Latin are more formal.

3. What does the word 'cement' mean in the sentence: 'Noah Webster released his American
Dictionary of the English Language in 1806. This book helped cement spelling differences
between British and American spellings'?
'Cement' means to establish or solidify. Here, it means that the book helped establish
the spelling differences between British and American English.

4. Which does the word 'dominate' mean in the context of this sentence: 'English would come
to dominate, with it being estimated that today 59% of websites are in the language'?
'Dominate' here means to control or be the largest.

5. What does the word 'adopted' mean in the sentence: 'English has adopted many words
from other languages since that time'?
'Adopted' means to take or accept something. In this case, it refers to English
incorporating or taking in words from other languages into its vocabulary.

Reading Comprehension Questions

1. In what year did the Normans conquer England and change the language spoken by the
ruling classes?
They conquered England in 1066.

2. When was the first permanent English settlement in North America established?
The first permanent English settlement in North America, called Jamestown, was
established in 1607.

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 The English Language

3. Who is believed to have created many words and expressions still used today?
William Shakespeare is believed to have created many words and expressions in his
works.
4. What is the significance of Noah Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language?
It helped cement the spelling differences between British and American English.

5. In what years was the World Wide Web invented and released to the public?
It was invented in 1989 and was later released to the public in 1991.

Writing Questions

Students’ own answers.

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