What is a commonly cited limitation of the Circle of World English?

• A. There are too many varieties to categorise, and there is no World Standard English.
• B. There is a single World Standard English.
• C. It excludes non-native varieties.
• D. It ignores regional differences.

Answer: (A)

The key idea here is that the Circle of World English is a helpful schematic, but it can’t capture the full diversity of English around the globe. English varieties exist in countless forms across different regions, communities, and online spaces, and they keep evolving. Because of that sheer variety and ongoing change, there isn’t one global standard that all speakers follow. So describing all Englishes with a fixed set of circles inevitably falls short, since it suggests there could be a single World Standard English. That’s why the statement about there being too many varieties to categorise and no World Standard English is the strongest and most accurate limitation.

In short, the model aims to map broad patterns, but reality isn’t neatly bundled into a single standard.