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independent word

[/ˌɪndɪˈpɛndənt wɜːrd/]
nounpl: independent words
palavra independente
1. A word that can stand alone and convey meaning without requiring other words for grammatical completeness; a free morpheme
In the sentence 'The cat is sleeping', 'cat', 'sleeping', and 'the' are independent words.
Na frase 'O gato está dormindo', 'gato', 'dormindo' e 'o' são palavras independentes.
2. A word that is not bound to other morphemes and can function as a complete lexical unit
Unlike the suffix '-ing', which is dependent, 'walk' is an independent word.
Ao contrário do sufixo '-ing', que é dependente, 'andar' é uma palavra independente.
Synonyms
free wordfree morphemestandalone word
Antonyms
dependent wordbound morphemeaffix

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
palavra independente
Standard term used in linguistics education
Portugal
palavra independente
Standard term used in Portuguese linguistics

Related Idioms & Phrases

stand-alone word
free-standing word
word that stands on its own
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