CALT Morphology and Etymology 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which term describes a morpheme that carries lexical meaning and can stand alone, such as 'run' or 'tree'?
- Bound morpheme
- Affix
- Free morpheme (Correct answer)
- Clitic
Correct answer: Free morpheme
Free morphemes are independent units of meaning that can stand alone as words, unlike bound morphemes which must attach to a base.
Question 2: A CALT practitioner asks a student to find the base word in 'prehistoric.' What is the correct answer?
- prehist
- historic
- history (Correct answer)
- hist
Correct answer: history
The base word is 'history,' with the prefix 'pre-' (before) and the suffix '-ic' (relating to) added to it.
Question 3: Which of the following is an example of a zero-derivation (conversion) in English morphology?
- Adding -tion to 'act' to form 'action'
- Using 'run' as both a verb and a noun without changing its form (Correct answer)
- Adding -er to 'teach' to form 'teacher'
- Adding un- to 'happy' to form 'unhappy'
Correct answer: Using 'run' as both a verb and a noun without changing its form
Zero-derivation (conversion) occurs when a word changes its grammatical category without any morphological change, as in 'run' used as both a verb and a noun.
Question 4: The suffix '-ology' appearing in words like 'biology' and 'psychology' derives from which Greek root meaning 'word' or 'study'?
- logos (Correct answer)
- bios
- graphos
- chronos
Correct answer: logos
The Greek root 'logos' means word, reason, or study, making '-ology' the study of a particular subject.
Question 5: In the word 'international,' which morpheme signals a grammatical relationship rather than adding new lexical meaning?
- inter-
- nation
- -al (Correct answer)
- All morphemes are equally lexical
Correct answer: -al
The suffix '-al' is a derivational morpheme that converts the noun 'nation' to an adjective, functioning as a grammatical marker.
Question 6: Which of the following words contains a Latin root meaning 'to write'?
- Manuscript (Correct answer)
- Telescope
- Hydrogen
- Thermometer
Correct answer: Manuscript
Manuscript contains 'manu' (hand) + 'script' (write) from the Latin 'scribere,' meaning something written by hand.
Question 7: When teaching morpheme families, a CALT practitioner groups 'dictate,' 'predict,' and 'verdict' together. What Latin root do they share?
- dict (to say/speak) (Correct answer)
- pre (before)
- vert (to turn)
- vict (to conquer)
Correct answer: dict (to say/speak)
All three words share the Latin root 'dict' from 'dicere,' meaning to say or speak, which is central to their meaning.
CALT Morphology and Etymology 5
Which term describes a morpheme that carries lexical meaning and can stand alone, such as 'run' or 'tree'?