Question
Which part of a word is always a free morpheme?
1)root word
2)suffix
3)base word
4) prefix
1)root word
2)suffix
3)base word
4) prefix
Answers
GPT-4o mini
The correct answer is: **1) root word**.
A root word is a free morpheme because it can stand alone as a word with meaning. In contrast, suffixes and prefixes are bound morphemes, meaning they cannot stand alone and must be attached to a root or base word to convey meaning. The term "base word" can refer to the root itself or a form that can take prefixes and suffixes, but it is not exclusively a free morpheme as a root word is.
A root word is a free morpheme because it can stand alone as a word with meaning. In contrast, suffixes and prefixes are bound morphemes, meaning they cannot stand alone and must be attached to a root or base word to convey meaning. The term "base word" can refer to the root itself or a form that can take prefixes and suffixes, but it is not exclusively a free morpheme as a root word is.