According to the described view, which statement best reflects the relationship between word forms and meanings?

• A. Meanings are always linked to precise word forms
• B. Word forms determine the exact ideas conveyed
• C. There is no inherent relation between word forms and meanings
• D. Words and meanings are interconnected in a fixed, universal mapping

Answer: (C)

The relationship between word forms and meanings is arbitrary and conventional. There isn’t a natural bond that ties a specific sound or spelling to a particular idea. The signs we use—the words—are labels agreed upon by a community, and the same concept can be expressed with different words in different languages, while a single word can carry several related meanings depending on context. This is why there isn’t an inherent link: the connection comes from usage and social convention, not from the form itself. For example, the same animal concept is labeled differently across languages (dog in English, perro in Spanish), and within a language a word can have multiple meanings. This view rules out the idea that meanings are fixed to precise word forms or that word forms alone determine ideas, and it rejects the notion of a universal, fixed mapping between form and meaning.