Which option is an example of a cognate as defined?

Which option is an example of a cognate as defined?

• A. A word with same origin but different meaning
• B. A word related to another word in a different language
• C. A word with no relation to any word in any language
• D. A word that is spelled the same in all languages

Answer: (B)

Cognates are words in different languages that come from the same ancestor and often share meaning. The option describing a word related to another word in a different language captures this cross-language relationship best. For example, English family and Spanish familia both trace back to Latin familia and convey related ideas of relatives. The other descriptions don’t fit as well: cognates aren’t defined by being identical in spelling across languages, and saying there’s no relation or that they always have different meanings misses the core idea of shared origin across languages.

Cognates are words in different languages that come from the same ancestor and often share meaning. The option describing a word related to another word in a different language captures this cross-language relationship best. For example, English family and Spanish familia both trace back to Latin familia and convey related ideas of relatives. The other descriptions don’t fit as well: cognates aren’t defined by being identical in spelling across languages, and saying there’s no relation or that they always have different meanings misses the core idea of shared origin across languages.