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What does a phoneme refer to?

  1. The smallest unit of meaning

  2. The shortest segment of speech that changes meaning

  3. A combination of words

  4. The structure of a sentence

The correct answer is: The shortest segment of speech that changes meaning

A phoneme refers to the shortest segment of speech that can differentiate meaning in a language. It is an individual sound that, when altered, can change the meaning of a word. For example, changing the initial sound in the word "bat" (which has the phoneme /b/) to the sound in "cat" (which has the phoneme /k/) results in two words with entirely different meanings. The other options do not accurately describe a phoneme. The smallest unit of meaning refers to a morpheme, which can be a word or a part of a word that conveys semantic content. A combination of words pertains to phrases or sentences and does not address individual sounds. The structure of a sentence relates to grammar and syntax, which are broader aspects of language that do not focus solely on the individual speech sounds that phonemes represent.