Which term describes the smallest elements of language that carry meaning?

Morphemes represent the smallest units of language that convey meaning. They can be individual words or parts of words, such as prefixes and suffixes. For instance, the word "cats" includes two morphemes: "cat," which refers to the animal, and "s," which indicates plurality. Understanding morphemes is important in linguistics and language development because they contribute to how words are formed and understood.

Words are larger units that often contain one or more morphemes and convey complete ideas. Sentences consist of groups of words arranged to express a thought and thus are much larger conceptual units. Phrases, like sentences, include multiple words that complement each other to form an idea but may not convey a complete thought on their own. This distinction highlights how morphemes serve as the foundation of meaning in the structure of language.