Roots, Prefixes and Suffixes: Helping our word knowledge grow

Debbie Lahav

What is a root word?A root word is the base word or part of a word.

Telephone Vitamin

Root words Sometimes the roots are real words.

cycle vent

Sometimes the roots are not a real word. geo sol

Words in English

Words in English are made up of:

[Prefix] + root word + [suffix] Bi + cycle sol + ar Re + gen + erate

Root Meaning

bio- life

pshych mind

anthrop human

gen Beginning

cogn know

pharmac medicine

physi nature

Prefix MeaningRe- again

Mis- wrongly

Co- Together

Sub- below

Inter- between

Suffix Meaning-ism Belief or doctrine

-age A collection of something

-able Can be done

-less without

Note: • Most prefixes change

the meaning of the word

• Most suffixes change the part of speech of a word

Can you guess the meaning of the words?

antisocial baggage misinform submarine coworker buddhism homeless intercontinental

Make your vocabulary grow!Learn the meaning of roots!

More on roots http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Greek_and_Latin_r

oots_in_English http://www.macroevolution.net/root-word-dictionary.ht

ml#.VDwYRfmSySo http://www.macroevolution.net/medical-root-words.ht

ml#.VDwYYPmSySo Greek and Latin Roots: Video