Anthropology Practice Test 2026 – The Comprehensive All-in-One Guide for Exam Success

Question: 1 / 400

What is the term for a sign with no necessary connection to the thing it stands for?

A. Morpheme

B. Lexicon

C. Phoneme

D. Symbol

The term that describes a sign with no necessary connection to the thing it represents is "symbol." Symbols are arbitrary representations that rely on social agreement and cultural context for their meaning rather than a natural connection to what they signify. For example, the word "tree" has no inherent relation to the object it describes; it is simply a socially agreed-upon term.

In contrast, morphemes are the smallest units of meaning in a language, lexicon refers to the collection of words in a language or the vocabulary of a particular language or field, and phonemes are the smallest units of sound in speech that can distinguish meaning. None of these terms embody the idea of an arbitrary connection like symbols do. Thus, the answer "symbol" clearly aligns with the definition provided in the question.

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