The statement "Current web search engines function by recognizing keywords in user queries and web pages" is:

Introduction / Context:
Search engines like Google, Bing, and others help users find information on the web by matching queries to relevant pages. Historically, they relied heavily on keywords typed by users and keywords appearing in web pages. Modern search engines are more advanced, but keywords still play a central role. This question asks whether the statement that current search engines function by recognising keywords is essentially correct or not.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The statement mentions current search engines, not just early ones.
• It claims that they function by recognising keywords.
• We know that modern engines also use many additional ranking factors.
• We must judge the statement at a general exam level, not as an exhaustive technical description.

Concept / Approach:
At the core, a search engine still receives a text query, splits it into terms (keywords), and matches those terms against an index of words found in web pages and documents. The engine then ranks results using algorithms that include keyword frequency, page quality, links, user behaviour, and many other signals. Therefore, saying that search engines function by recognising keywords is broadly correct, even though it is simplified. It would be incorrect to say that they ignore keywords or rely only on images, randomness, or layout.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Consider what happens when you type a phrase into a search box: the engine tokenises the query into separate words. Step 2: Those words are matched against an index built from analysing keywords in billions of web pages. Step 3: The engine then evaluates many ranking factors, but keyword matching remains a crucial part of this process. Step 4: Compare this understanding with the statement that current engines function by recognising keywords; this is a fair high level description. Step 5: Reject the idea that engines ignore keywords or look only at images because that contradicts how text search works. Step 6: Conclude that the statement is basically correct, although simplified, and select the option marking it as correct.

Verification / Alternative check:
Documentation and research papers on information retrieval describe the core search process as indexing documents by terms and computing term frequency and related measures. Modern search engines enhance this with machine learning and semantic understanding but still rely on terms and keywords for matching. SEO (search engine optimisation) guidelines also discuss using relevant keywords naturally in page titles, headings, and content, proving that keywords remain central. All these sources support treating the statement as correct for general knowledge purposes.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Incorrect – search engines completely ignore keywords: This is false; without keywords, text search would not function. Incorrect – search engines look only at images and multimedia: Visual content is important, but text and keywords are still fundamental. Incorrect – search engines rank pages using random choices: Ranking is based on complex algorithms, not randomness.

Common Pitfalls:
A common misunderstanding is to assume that because search engines now use AI and semantic analysis, keywords no longer matter. In reality, semantics and intent detection build on top of keyword analysis, not instead of it. For exam style questions, it is safe to treat keyword recognition as a defining characteristic of how search engines function, while remembering that many additional ranking signals are also involved.

Final Answer:
The statement is Correct – search engines analyse keywords along with many other ranking signals.