What is the term for the knowledge about words, their meanings, use, and relationships?

What is the term for the knowledge about words, their meanings, use, and relationships?

• A. Lexicon
• B. Grammar
• C. Phonology
• D. Semantics

Answer: (A)

The knowledge about words, their meanings, use, and relationships is the lexicon—the mental dictionary of a language. It includes what a word means, how it’s used in different contexts, how it changes form, and how words relate to one another (such as synonyms, antonyms, or word-family connections). This is different from semantics, which studies meaning at the level of words and sentences; grammar, which covers rules for word order and structure; and phonology, which deals with sound systems. For example, knowing that a word can have multiple senses and how it combines with other words in typical expressions lives in the lexicon.