semanteme

/sɪˈmæntiːm/
noun
  1. A basic unit of meaning in a language, such as a word or morpheme.
    • In linguistics, a semanteme is the smallest element that carries meaning.
    • Learning about semantemes helps students understand how words are built.
    • The word 'unhappiness' contains three semantemes: 'un-', 'happy', and '-ness'.
Synonyms