Which term describes a morpheme that cannot stand alone as a word?

Which term describes a morpheme that cannot stand alone as a word?

• A. Free Morpheme
• B. Root Morpheme
• C. Allomorph
• D. Bound Morpheme

Answer: (D)

Morpheme units that can’t stand alone are bound morphemes. They must attach to a base to carry meaning, like un- in unhappy or -ed in walked. They provide grammatical information or modify meaning, but they aren’t words by themselves. In contrast, a free morpheme can stand alone as a word (walk, cat). The root morpheme is the main piece that carries core meaning, and while roots can be free morphemes, the important idea here is that bound morphemes cannot stand alone. Allomorphs are different pronunciations of the same morpheme, not about whether it can stand alone.

Morpheme units that can’t stand alone are bound morphemes. They must attach to a base to carry meaning, like un- in unhappy or -ed in walked. They provide grammatical information or modify meaning, but they aren’t words by themselves. In contrast, a free morpheme can stand alone as a word (walk, cat). The root morpheme is the main piece that carries core meaning, and while roots can be free morphemes, the important idea here is that bound morphemes cannot stand alone. Allomorphs are different pronunciations of the same morpheme, not about whether it can stand alone.