Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) Practice Test

A morpheme is defined as the smallest meaningful unit of language. This means that a morpheme is a piece of a word that holds semantic significance; in other words, it conveys meaning. Morphemes can be standalone words, such as "cat" or "book," or they can be prefixes or suffixes that modify the meaning of a root, such as "un-" in "undo" or "-ed" in "walked."

Understanding morphemes is crucial for analyzing language because it helps break down words into their components, making it easier to understand complex vocabulary. For instance, the word "happiness" consists of two morphemes: "happy" (which carries the main meaning) and "-ness" (which transforms the adjective into a noun denoting a state or condition).

In contrast, other options such as the smallest unit of sound in speech pertain to phonemes, complete sentences are larger constructs in language, and the basic building block of phonics refers more to sounds and reading instruction rather than meaningful units of language. Thus, recognizing morphemes enhances linguistic comprehension and aids in spelling and reading development.