This chapter
introduces a Middle English task that the authors have used as part of the first lecture of a History of
English course at a European university. The students’ output shows that they
are resourceful readers and understand a lot of Middle English vocabulary
without ever having been taught HEL before. However, since the students are
still unaware of semantic change and the range of variation evidenced in Middle
English and not very adept at grammatical analysis, they are often misled by
the outward similarity of Middle English and Present-Day English words and by
complex phrasal and sentence structures. The introductory task helps teachers to
identify problem areas to focus on in subsequent lectures. It can be utilized
in all kinds of HEL courses.