The excerpt suggests that Johnson's work is significant because it

• A. searched literature and found more words.
• B. changed the format of dictionaries.
• C. applied rules to make language less chaotic.
• D. selected only the most difficult words to define.

Answer: (A)

The main idea is that Johnson’s dictionarySignificance comes from building the work by drawing on a wide range of literary texts and using those sources to show how words were actually used. He sifted through literature, gathering many words and, crucially, supplying quotations to illustrate each usage. This approach anchored meanings in real practice and helped standardize English, making the dictionary not just a list of definitions but a reflection of how language lived in books. That emphasis on mining literature and expanding the record of usage is why this choice fits best. The other ideas miss this core method: while Johnson’s project did affect how dictionaries present evidence, it wasn’t about changing format for its own sake, and it certainly wasn’t about restricting to only the most difficult words.