The examples memory stick, brand name, well-respected illustrate which category?

The examples memory stick, brand name, well-respected illustrate which category?

• A. Compound words
• B. Blended forms
• C. Acronyms
• D. Phrases

Answer: (A)

Two or more words are joined to form a single unit. That’s what’s happening in these examples: memory stick combines memory and stick to name a type of storage device; brand name links brand and name to designate a product’s official title; well-respected is a hyphenated form that ties well and respected into one descriptive term. This joining creates a single lexical item that functions as a unit in sentences, which is the hallmark of compound words. By contrast, acronyms are built from initial letters to form a new word (like NASA), blended forms mix parts of words into a new word (like brunch from breakfast and lunch), and phrases stay as separate words used together without being fused into one unit.