Which statement asserts there is no inherent relation between words and their meanings?

Which statement asserts there is no inherent relation between words and their meanings?

• A. Language is a system of systems
• B. Language is arbitrary
• C. Language is a mental phenomenon
• D. Language is a vehicle for social transactions

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is that the link between a word’s form and its meaning is not built into the word itself but is a matter of convention. This is the principle of arbitrariness in how language signs work: the sound or letters that form a word (the signifier) are connected to its meaning (the signified) because speakers agree on that mapping, not because the sounds inherently reflect the concept. That’s why different languages use very different words for the same idea—English uses “dog,” French uses “chien,” and Mandarin uses “狗” (gǒu)—with no natural reason tying any particular sound to the animal. Of course, there are occasional sound-symbolic or iconic elements in some words or expressions, but the general rule is that the form–meaning link is conventional, not intrinsic. The other statements describe different aspects of language—its structure as a system of systems, its mental processing, or its social use—without labeling the basic form-meaning connection as arbitrary.

The main idea here is that the link between a word’s form and its meaning is not built into the word itself but is a matter of convention. This is the principle of arbitrariness in how language signs work: the sound or letters that form a word (the signifier) are connected to its meaning (the signified) because speakers agree on that mapping, not because the sounds inherently reflect the concept. That’s why different languages use very different words for the same idea—English uses “dog,” French uses “chien,” and Mandarin uses “狗” (gǒu)—with no natural reason tying any particular sound to the animal. Of course, there are occasional sound-symbolic or iconic elements in some words or expressions, but the general rule is that the form–meaning link is conventional, not intrinsic. The other statements describe different aspects of language—its structure as a system of systems, its mental processing, or its social use—without labeling the basic form-meaning connection as arbitrary.