Which of the following is a compound word?

Which of the following is a compound word?

• A. Washing Machine
• B. Table Tennis
• C. Orange Juice
• D. Mother In Law

Answer: (A)

Two or more words join to create a single term with its own meaning. Washing machine fits this idea because it combines washing and machine to name one device—the machine that washes clothes. The two words work together to signal a single object, not just separate ideas. The other phrases describe things, but they don’t fuse into one unit in the same way. Table tennis is the name of a sport, orange juice is a product made from oranges, and mother in law is a family relation typically written as separate words rather than as one fused term. So washing machine best matches the concept of a compound word.

Two or more words join to create a single term with its own meaning. Washing machine fits this idea because it combines washing and machine to name one device—the machine that washes clothes. The two words work together to signal a single object, not just separate ideas.

The other phrases describe things, but they don’t fuse into one unit in the same way. Table tennis is the name of a sport, orange juice is a product made from oranges, and mother in law is a family relation typically written as separate words rather than as one fused term. So washing machine best matches the concept of a compound word.