Which statement describes a hallmark feature of Broca's aphasia?

• A. Fluent speech with poor comprehension
• B. Impaired repetition with fluent speech
• C. Nonfluent speech with relatively preserved comprehension
• D. Global loss of language

Answer: (C)

A hallmark of Broca's aphasia is nonfluent, effortful speech with relatively preserved comprehension. The damage in the left frontal language area produces short, telegraphic phrases with missing function words and simplified grammar, so producing speech is laborious. Yet understanding spoken language—especially simple sentences—remains comparatively intact, so the person can often grasp what is being said. Repetition and naming are frequently impaired because the same frontal language networks support fluent production and syntactic processing. This combination helps distinguish it from other aphasias: fluent speech with poor comprehension describes Wernicke's aphasia; fluent speech with impaired repetition points to conduction aphasia; and a global loss of language reflects widespread language-area damage.