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Free practice questions, preparation advice, and expert insights for Linguistics and Modern Languages interviews at Cambridge.
Real Linguistics and Modern Languages interview questions in the style Cambridge asks. Try answering each one aloud before you reveal the hint.
Translate the Cammy sentence No xi barada vilu curu into English, showing how each word contributes to the answer.
Close-Reading & Passage Analysis
For the statement Mary saw Ellen at the train station, explain how changing the focus of the denial changes what is being rejected.
Close-Reading & Passage Analysis
How does adding only before a focused phrase change the information conveyed by the sentence?
Close-Reading & Passage Analysis
Summarise the author's argument about constructed languages and say whether you agree, giving reasons.
Close-Reading & Passage Analysis
How does the writer of the constructed-languages passage try to persuade the reader? Use examples from the text.
Close-Reading & Passage Analysis
Supervision-style interviews with problem-solving and academic discussion, often with two interviewers.
Cambridge interviews usually happen at your first-choice college. Most applicants have two interviews, with some subjects requiring a third at the pooled college. Cambridge interviews tend to involve two interviewers and may include a written assessment or pre-interview task sent on the day.
Interview Invitation
Late Nov
Arrival to Interview
Early Dec
Technical Question
Mid Dec
Decision
Early Jan
Interview Invitation
Late Nov
Arrival to Interview
Early Dec
Technical Question
Mid Dec
Decision
Early Jan
Summarise the author's argument about mobile-phone etiquette and respond to it in the modern language you intend to study.
For a two-syllable Ronzert word such as lamplaz, propose a syllable split and defend your reasoning.
In the quantifier data, decide whether five-year-old children appear to have learned the meaning of all, and justify your answer from the response pattern.
Which adult responses in the quantifier data look exceptional, and what might that imply about the sentence rather than the participants?
Compare Wolakota and English tense marking: name two similarities and two differences.
Does Cammy distinguish singular and plural you? Explain your answer from the examples.
Why might sociolinguists study attitudes to unknown languages rather than languages whose social context participants already know?
What are the benefits and drawbacks of including near-opposite traits such as natural and artificial in a language-attitudes study?
Using the Ronzert word list, infer which consonants can appear only directly beside the vowel, and explain the pattern.
What rules govern where p can appear in a Ronzert syllable, and what evidence supports your answer?
Explain why the proposed Ronzert form tlalmp is not permitted, identifying the broken ordering rule.
Using the Wolakota examples, identify the basic word order and give evidence for your conclusion.
Translate a new Wolakota sentence into English and explain which parts of the data made your translation possible.
Give three ways in which Cammy grammar resembles English grammar, using examples from the data.
If Wolakota used English-style Subject-Verb-Object order, which pieces of your original analysis would have to change?
If participants were told that LangB was Welsh, how might that change your interpretation of their ratings?
If Qazju had articles equivalent to the and a, which ambiguities in the sample translations would disappear?
Your personal statement links a modern-language topic with linguistics. What is the strongest connection between them, and where might the connection break down?
You mention a linguistic phenomenon in your application. How would you collect a small data set to investigate it?
Looking back at a piece of written work you submitted, what is one argument you would now sharpen or complicate?
Why have you chosen this modern language route, and how have you tested your interest beyond classroom success?
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Book Mock Interview →Further Reading
by George Yule
Clear introductory coverage of core linguistic levels, useful before attempting unfamiliar-language data tasks.
by David Crystal
Broad reference for language structure, change, acquisition, writing systems and sociolinguistic context.
by Gretchen McCulloch
Accessible route into contemporary language change, pragmatics and digital communication.
by Patsy M. Lightbown and Nina Spada
Good bridge between modern-language learning and language-acquisition questions.
by Guy Deutscher
Stimulates debate about language, culture and perception, useful for interview discussion if read critically.
by International Linguistics Olympiad
Large archive of self-contained language-analysis puzzles for pattern-recognition practice.
by Gretchen McCulloch and Lauren Gawne
Accessible discussions of linguistics topics that can generate interview-worthy reflections.
by Gretchen McCulloch
Good source of readable posts on contemporary linguistics and internet language.
by University of Cambridge
Essential for checking whether a College assessment applies and for accessing official specimen materials.
by Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics
Clarifies the course's three strands: language, scheduled cultural papers and linguistics.