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morpheme

MOR-feem

ˈmɔːrfiːm

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Syllable breakdown

morpheme

Sounds like

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Dictionary meaning

The smallest meaningful unit in a language; a word or word element that cannot be divided without losing meaning.

History and origin

Greek — 'morphe' (form) + '-eme' (linguistic unit).

Examples

  • 'Unbreakable' has three morphemes: 'un-', 'break', and '-able'.

Common mispronunciations

MOR-feem-eemor-FEEM

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