Which constraint is most directly about mapping a new word to the entire object rather than its parts?

Which constraint is most directly about mapping a new word to the entire object rather than its parts?

• A. Mutual Exclusivity Principle
• B. Taxonomic Constraint
• C. Semantic Bootstrapping
• D. Whole Object Constraint

Answer: (D)

This question hinges on the idea that young learners tend to map a novel word to the whole object rather than to its individual parts or properties. The Whole Object Constraint captures this natural bias: when a new word is heard, it’s most likely interpreted as labeling the entire object in view, not just a piece, color, function, or location of a part. This explains why the correct option fits best—the constraint directly describes how a new word is linked to the object as a whole. For contrast, mutual exclusivity focuses on assigning a new word to an object that doesn’t already have a label, taxonomic constraint guides mapping to a category of similar items, and semantic bootstrapping involves using syntactic cues to infer meaning; none of these target the whole-object mapping bias as directly.

This question hinges on the idea that young learners tend to map a novel word to the whole object rather than to its individual parts or properties. The Whole Object Constraint captures this natural bias: when a new word is heard, it’s most likely interpreted as labeling the entire object in view, not just a piece, color, function, or location of a part. This explains why the correct option fits best—the constraint directly describes how a new word is linked to the object as a whole. For contrast, mutual exclusivity focuses on assigning a new word to an object that doesn’t already have a label, taxonomic constraint guides mapping to a category of similar items, and semantic bootstrapping involves using syntactic cues to infer meaning; none of these target the whole-object mapping bias as directly.