Which term describes how words are built?

Which term describes how words are built?

• A. Morphology
• B. Morpheme
• C. Syntax
• D. Discourse

Answer: (A)

Understanding how words are built is about morphology. Morphology studies the structure of words and how roots combine with prefixes and suffixes to change meaning or part of speech. For example, in “unhappiness,” un- adds a negative sense, happy is the root, and -ness turns the adjective into a noun. A morpheme is the smallest meaningful unit itself, not the process of forming words. Syntax deals with word order and sentence structure, while discourse looks at language use across longer stretches of talk or writing. So the term that best describes how words are built is morphology.

Understanding how words are built is about morphology. Morphology studies the structure of words and how roots combine with prefixes and suffixes to change meaning or part of speech. For example, in “unhappiness,” un- adds a negative sense, happy is the root, and -ness turns the adjective into a noun. A morpheme is the smallest meaningful unit itself, not the process of forming words. Syntax deals with word order and sentence structure, while discourse looks at language use across longer stretches of talk or writing. So the term that best describes how words are built is morphology.