Which term refers to the system that governs the order and relationships within a sentence?

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

Answer: (B)

Syntax governs how words are arranged and relate to one another within a sentence, shaping the order of elements like subject, verb, and object and how modifiers attach to the words they describe. This is the system that determines how a sentence is structured and interpreted grammatically. For example, in English the typical subject-verb-object order shows how syntax organizes relationships between sentence parts. Morphology would study the internal forms of words (like walk vs walked), semantics would focus on meaning, and pragmatics on language use in context and implied meaning.