Question

the smallest distinctive sound units in a language that an individual can distinguish are _______
a. semantics
b. phonemes
c. morphemes
d. syntaxes

please select the best answer from the choices provided

a
b
c
d

Explanation:

Define the linguistic terms

• Semantics: The study of meaning in language.
• Phonemes: The smallest distinctive sound units in a language.
• Morphemes: The smallest units of meaning in a language (e.g., prefixes, suffixes, root words).
• Syntax: The rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences.

Identify the correct term

The question asks for "the smallest distinctive sound units in a language," which matches the definition of phonemes.

Answer:

• A. semantics
• B. phonemes (Correct answer)
• C. morphemes
• D. syntaxes