Which of the following is NOT a component of Form?

• A. Phonology
• B. Morphology
• C. Syntax
• D. Semantics

Answer: (D)

Form focuses on the structure of language—the sounds, the internal word-building rules, and how words combine into sentences. Phonology covers the sound system, morphology handles word formation and changes, and syntax governs how words are ordered to create phrases and sentences. Semantics, by contrast, deals with meaning—the concepts, relationships, and truth conditions conveyed by words and sentences. Since meaning belongs to Content rather than Form, it is not a component of Form. For example, the word for a small animal has a phonological form (how it sounds), can take morphological changes (like plural endings), and can be placed into syntactic structures to form sentences; but what the word represents and how those meanings relate to the world is semantics.