Which morphemes typically appear early in English, and which tend to appear later?

Which morphemes typically appear early in English, and which tend to appear later?

• A. Early: articles (a/an/the) or past tense -ed; Later: present progressive -ing, plural -s.
• B. Early: present progressive -ing, plural -s; Later: articles (a/an/the) or past tense -ed.
• C. Early: present tense -ed; Later: -ing and -s.
• D. Early: conjunctions; Later: pronouns.

Answer: (B)

The pattern being tested is the typical order in which English morphemes appear in a child's speech, driven by frequency, salience, and how easily the form can be generalized. The present progressive -ing and the plural -s are among the first morphemes children pick up because they are common, clearly useful for expressing ongoing action and number, and attach in straightforward, productive ways to a wide range of verbs and nouns. This makes them easier to learn early on. Articles (a, an, the) and the past tense suffix -ed come in later because they require more abstract syntactic knowledge and broader grammatical rules. Using articles correctly involves determiner-noun context and appropriate specification, which is a more complex system for young learners. Mastering the past tense -ed, even though it is regular, also requires consistent application across verbs and attention to tense, making it a later development compared to the reliably attached -ing and -s morphemes. So the best choice reflects that early emergence of -ing and -s, with articles or -ed developing after. The other options place morphemes in a less accurate order or include forms (like a present tense -ed) that aren’t described as early features in typical acquisition patterns.

The pattern being tested is the typical order in which English morphemes appear in a child's speech, driven by frequency, salience, and how easily the form can be generalized. The present progressive -ing and the plural -s are among the first morphemes children pick up because they are common, clearly useful for expressing ongoing action and number, and attach in straightforward, productive ways to a wide range of verbs and nouns. This makes them easier to learn early on.

Articles (a, an, the) and the past tense suffix -ed come in later because they require more abstract syntactic knowledge and broader grammatical rules. Using articles correctly involves determiner-noun context and appropriate specification, which is a more complex system for young learners. Mastering the past tense -ed, even though it is regular, also requires consistent application across verbs and attention to tense, making it a later development compared to the reliably attached -ing and -s morphemes.

So the best choice reflects that early emergence of -ing and -s, with articles or -ed developing after. The other options place morphemes in a less accurate order or include forms (like a present tense -ed) that aren’t described as early features in typical acquisition patterns.