Which option best describes the function of morphology?

Which option best describes the function of morphology?

• A. Morphology studies words' pronunciation.
• B. Morphology studies word formation and how prefixes/suffixes modify meaning.
• C. Morphology studies word frequency.
• D. Morphology studies language families.

Answer: (B)

Morphology focuses on how words are built from smaller meaningful units and how affixes change a word’s meaning or its grammatical role. It treats morphemes—the smallest units of meaning—and shows how adding prefixes or suffixes creates new words or alters tense, number, or part of speech. For example, adding un- to a base like happy changes its meaning to the opposite, and adding -ness turns an adjective into a noun. This is exactly what word formation and affixation describe, which is why that option best captures the function of morphology. Other areas focus on different aspects of language: pronunciation is about sounds and how words are spoken, word frequency concerns how often words appear in language use, and language family studies look at historical relationships between languages.

Morphology focuses on how words are built from smaller meaningful units and how affixes change a word’s meaning or its grammatical role. It treats morphemes—the smallest units of meaning—and shows how adding prefixes or suffixes creates new words or alters tense, number, or part of speech. For example, adding un- to a base like happy changes its meaning to the opposite, and adding -ness turns an adjective into a noun. This is exactly what word formation and affixation describe, which is why that option best captures the function of morphology.

Other areas focus on different aspects of language: pronunciation is about sounds and how words are spoken, word frequency concerns how often words appear in language use, and language family studies look at historical relationships between languages.