Glendale CC Name ______________

Ivan Kasimoff Credit ESL

Affixes and Roots
Most people only look at a whole word to figure out its meaning. However, looking at the parts of words can help
you understand many words. English words are often made up of smaller word parts. The three parts of a word are:
the prefix, which is the first part of a word; the root, which is the main part of a word and usually comes in the
middle; the suffix, which comes at the end of a word. For example, unforgettable is made up of un- meaning not,
forget meaning to fail to remember, and -able meaning having the ability to do something. Altogether,
unforgettable means, “remember in a way that cannot be forgotten.” By learning many different word parts, that is,
prefixes, roots, and suffixes, you will be able to know many things about a word such as the overall meaning or, at
least a general meaning of a word, the subject, and the part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, etc.).

It is estimated that 60% of English words consist of roots or affixes that originally come from Latin and Greek. By
learning these roots and affixes, you can make reasonable guesses of the meaning of new words. For example, look
at the following words: insecticide, herbicide, homicide, suicide, and genocide. The root cide means to kill. What
do you think the other parts of these words mean? Look up the parts of these word in the table below and guess the
meaning of the whole word. Remember, over the centuries, many roots and affixes have changed in both meaning
and spelling, so to be flexible in figuring what a word may mean. Then check with a dictionary to be sure. The
word parts below are some of the most useful ones you will need to know.

A. Common Word Roots

Root Meaning Example Definition
agr field agronomy field-crop production and soil management 1
anthropo man anthropology the study of man
astro star astronaut one who travels in interplanetary space
audi/t hear audible loud enough to be heard
bio life biology the study of life 5
cardio heart cardiac pertaining to the heart
cede go precede to go before
chromo color chromatology the science of colors
chron/o time chronic lasting a long time
cred believe incredible Unbelievable 10
cycl circle, ring bicycle a vehicle with two wheels
demos people democracy government by the people
derma skin epidermis the outer layer of skin
dict speak prediction a statement foretelling the future
duc/t lead educate to lead to knowledge 15
dyna power dynamic characterized by power and energy
dys abnormal, bad dystopia an imaginary place of total misery
gen/o/e birth, kind… generation all the people born about the same time
geo earth geology the study of the earth
gram, graphy letter, write autograph written with one’s own hand 20
helio sun heliotrope any plant that turns toward the sun
homo same homogeneous of the same nature or kind
hydro water hydroponics growing of plants in water reinforced with nutrients
 hypno sleep hypnosis a state of sleep induced by suggestion
ject throw eject to throw out 25
logy study of genealogy the study of the history of a family
magni great, big magnify to enlarge, to make bigger
man(u) hand manuscript written by hand
miss, mit send, let go emit to send something out
mob move immobilize to stop from moving 30

Common Word Roots (continued)

Root Meaning Example Definition
mort death immortal living forever, unable to die 31
ortho straight orthodox right, true, straight opinion
path/y feeling, emotion. antipathy a feeling of great dislike
phon/o sound microphone a device that records and amplifies sound
photo light photogenic caused by light 35
pod foot pseudopod false foot
poli/s city metropolis a large city
port carry export to carry goods out of a place to another
psych/o mind, mental psychology study of the mind
pyro fire pyrometer an instrument for measuring temperatures 40
scrib, script write describe to represent with words or pictures
son sound supersonic faster than sound
spec/t, spic see, look circumspect not acting until looking at all of the circumstances
terra earth terrace a raised platform of earth
the/o god monotheism belief in one god 45
thermo heat thermodynamic power that comes from heat
vers, vert turn invert to change something to its opposite
vid, vis see evident clearly seen
voc/i voice, call advocate to speak in favor of
zoo animal zoology the study of animals 50

B. Common Prefixes
Root Meaning Example Definition
anti- against, opposite antifreeze liquid used to guard against freezing 51
auto- self, same automatic self-acting or self-regulating
bene- good benefit an act of kindness; a gift
co/m/n with, together coeducational educating males and females together,
commemorate to memorialize together
contra- against contradict to speak against 55
dys- bad dysfunctional not functioning
ecto- outside ectoparasite parasite living on the exterior of animals
 endo- within endogamy marriage within the tribe
e-, ex- out eject, excavate throw out forcefully, to dig out
equi- equal equidistant equal distance 60
extra- outside, beyond extraterrestrial beyond the earth
hyper- over hypertension high blood pressure
hypo- under hypotension low blood pressure
in- in instead in the place of
intro- inside introspect to look within, as in one's own mind 65
macro- large macroscopic large enough to be observed by the naked eye
mal- bad maladjusted badly adjusted
micro- small microscopic so small that one needs a microscope to observe
multi- many multitasking doing many things at once
neo- new neolithic new stone age 70
pan- all pantheon a temple dedicated to all gods
poly- many polygon a shape with more than three straight sides
pro- for proponent a supporter
proto- first prototype first or original model

Common Prefixes (continued)

Root Meaning Example Definition
pseudo- false pseudonym false name; esp., an author's pen-name 75
re-, red- back, again rejuvenate to make young again
retro- backward retrospect a looking back on things
scop/e/y see, examine microscope a device used to see tiny things
semi- half semicircle half a circle
super- above, greater superior above average, better in quality 80
sy/m/n/l/s- together, same symmetry similarity in size, form, or arrangement
synchronize to cause to occur at the same time
tele- far telescope seeing or viewing afar

C. Number prefix
Root Meaning Example Definition
uni- one universe the totality of all matter + energy that exists in space 83
mono- one monoplane airplane with one wing
bi- two bicycle a vehicle with 2 wheels and a seat with pedals 85
duo- two duodecimal using the number 12 as a base system
di- two dialogue the words spoken by characters in a book, film, etc.
tri- three triangle a plane figure that has 3 sides and 3 angles
quad- four quadraphonic using a four-channel system to record or produce sound
tetra- four tetragram a word that has four letters 90
th
quint- five quincentenary a 500 anniversary
 pent- five pentagon a geometric figure that has 5 sides and 5 angles
sex- six sexagenarian somebody aged between 60 and 69
hex- six hexagram a 6 pointed star shaped figure
sept- seven septennial lasting 7 years, occurring once every 7 years 95
oct- eight octet a group of 8, especially 8 singers or instrumentalist
nov- nine novena in the roman catholic church, 9 days of prayer
dec- ten decade a period of 10 years
centi hundred century 100 years
mili, thousand millimeter a unit of length equal to one thousandth of a meter 100
semi half semicircle a curved or crescent-shaped shape
hemi half hemisphere one half of the Earth, especially a half north or south

D. Math & Science Affixes and Roots

Root Meaning Example Definition
aqua water aquarium a water filled transparent container for fish 103
astro star astronaut somebody trained to travel in space
bio life biology the science that deals with all forms of life 105
equi equal equivalent being the same or of the same value or meaning
hydro water hydroplane a motorboat designed so that it rises above the water
lat side unilateral having one side
meter measure diameter a straight line running across the sides of a circle
micro small microfilm a very small strip of photographic film 110
-ology study of geology the study of the structure of the earth
-onomy science of astronomy the scientific study on the universe
ped foot pedestrian somebody who is traveling on foot
pod foot tripod a frame or stand with 3 legs used for supporting a sthg.
thermo heat themophile a living thing that lives well in warm environments 115
tele far off telescope a device for making distant objects appear nearer

E. Prefixes that mean "no”

Prefix Meaning Examples
a-, an- without, not asexual, atypical, amoral, anarchy 117
de- reverse action, away defrost, demystify, desensitize, deduct
dis-, dif-, di- not, apart dissatisfied, disorganized, different, divert
ig-, in-, -il, im, -ir not, without ignoble, invisible, illegal, impossible, irreparable 120
mis- not misunderstand, misstep, misrepresent
non- not nonproductive, nonsense, nonconformist
un- not unlikely, unnoticeable, unreliable
contra, counter- against contrary, contradict, counterproductive

F. Prefixes that indicate "when," "where," or "more"

Prefix Meaning Examples
ante- before antecedent, antechamber, antebellum 125
circum- around circumnavigate, circumference
inter- between, among interstate, intercept, interfere, intervene
intra- within intramural, intrastate, intravenous
post- after postwar, postoperative, postpone
pre-, pro- before pre-dinner, preliminary, previous, prologue, precede 130
sub- under submarine, submerge, subjugate
trans- across transcontinental, transparent, transaction
ultra- beyond, on the far ultrasonic, ultraviolet, ultraconservative
side of, excessive

G. A Few Common Suffixes

Noun Suffixes
Suffix Meaning Examples
-archy government patriarchy, monarchy, oligarchy, anarchy, plutarchy
-cide the killing of fratricide, herbicide, matricide, pesticide, homicide 135
-er, -or one who Londoner, worker, reader, narrator, translator
-eer one skilled, engaged in engineer, mountaineer, profiteer
relating to, having
-ion, -tion relaxation, nation, action, creation, passion
characteristics of
-ism action or practice of communism, cubism, heroism, racism, pacifism
-ist one who artist, Baptist, chemist, florist, humanist, theist 140
condition, quality, state
-ity priority, stupidity, productivity, disability
of being
-metry, meter measure geometry, thermometer, kilometer, semester
-scope looking telescope, microscope, gastroscope

Adjective Suffixes
-able, -ible, -ble capable of, fit for understandable, fixable, incredible, intangible
-ful full of Playful, masterful, armful, useful 145
-less without, having no spotless, thoughtless, pitiless
full of, having the
-ous, -ious, -ose monotonous, incredulous
qualities of

Adverb Suffixes
-ly like gallantry, thoughtfully, universally, usually, yearly