word

A word IS a specific kind of symbol: a conventional sign where form stands for meaning. A competent speaker would call a word 'a symbol of meaning.' Direction specific→general.

which-came-first test: language (epoch 0.12) predates word (epoch 0.23). Removal test: remove language and words cease to operate — words are units of language and require the system of language to function as meaningful symbols. Not a meta-level dependency (Law 2b): words as concrete linguistic items stop working without language, not just stop being sayable.

An etymon IS a specific kind of word: the historical form of a word from which a later word descends. Law 9: specific→general. A competent speaker would recognize 'an etymon is a word (in its ancestral form).' Direction is correct.

A portmanteau IS a specific kind of word: a lexical blend formed by merging parts of two or more words. A competent speaker would call a portmanteau 'a word' (Law 9). Direction specific to general. Word is the nearest kind.

An eponym is a specific kind of word — a word derived from the name of a person or place. A competent speaker would call an eponym 'a word.' Law 9: specific→general.

A homophone is a specific kind of word — one that sounds like another word but has different meaning. Per Law 9: a competent speaker would call a homophone 'a word.' The entry's accepted definition confirms this sense.

The entry the-word-tree denotes a specific English word — a competent speaker would call it a word. INSTANCE_OF to the nearest kind.

Law 9 specific to nearest accepted kind; Law 11d pins both senses against their accepted definitions. lexeme's accepted def carves it as 'the minimal abstract unit of meaning in a language — the dictionary headword that stands behind all its inflected forms' (parameters: an abstract form distinct from any single surface realization; a stable meaning relation holding across morphological variants). word's accepted def carves 'a discrete linguistic unit consisting of one or more morphemes, organized by human convention to carry specific meaning within a language system.' Under the accepted carve, every lexeme is a dictionary headword — a discrete morpheme-constituted unit organized by convention to carry specific meaning, i.e. a word — plus the additional parameters of abstractness and standing behind a paradigm of inflected forms. A competent speaker calls the lexeme of 'ran' (the headword RUN) a word. Nearest-kind check: word's accepted kind-children (etymon, portmanteau, eponym, homophone, catchword) are cross-cutting properties of words, none subsumes lexeme, and no intermediate held kind exists (headword, word-form unheld; the held 'lemma' entry carves a MATHEMATICAL proposition — a different word and sense, no collision). Not a derivable leap: no accepted or pending intermediate rung. Pinned senses: lexeme as dictionary headword carrying a paradigm; word as discrete morpheme-constituted unit of meaning.

A catchword is a specific kind of word — one chosen for its ability to summarize a topic, attract attention, or serve as a mnemonic. A competent speaker would call it 'a type of word' (specifically, a word used in a particular way). This files against the nearest existing kind.