Roots

English vocabulary includes short words like the article a as well as longer words such asinextricably and denunciation. Short words such as speak and solve are called base words orroot words when they are derived from anotherlanguage such as Greek or Latin because they CANNOT be broken down into smaller parts.

Although base or root words cannot be reduced to smaller parts, other word parts can be added to base words to produce

longer words with various meanings.

pre + fix = prefix

There are two kindsof word parts: base or root words and affixes (prefixes or suffixes).

prefix + root + suffix

affixes

Meanings of RootsSometimes readers can determine the meaning of a word by defining its root. A root is a base word or word part, often derived from Greek or Latin, that contains the core meaning of the word. The meaning of the word varies depending upon the affix (prefix or suffix) that is used.

Roots have meaning. Study the following roots, their meanings, and some examples of words in which they appear.

GreekLatin

Word Origins: GreekGreek Root Meaning English Words

anthrop human anthropology,anthropomorphic

bibl book bibliography,Bible

chrom color monochrome,chromatic

derm skin dermatology,Epidermis

gnos know agnostic,Diagnostic

Word Origins: GreekGreek Root Meaning English Words

orth straight orthodox,orthodontist

phil like, love philosophy,philanthropy

photo light photograph,photogenic

pyro fire pyromaniac,pyrotechnics

therm heat thermometer,thermal

Word Origins: LatinLatin Root Meaning English Words

dict say, speak contradict,predict, verdict

medi half, middle mediate, medieval

nov new novel, renovate,novice

satis sufficient, enough saturate,satisfy

spir breath inspire,respiration

Word Origins: LatinLatin Root Meaning English Words

tort twist torture,contort

trib pay, bestow tribute,attribute

ven come Intervene,venture

vis see revise,vista

vor swallow devour,carnivorous

Homework

• For each root word that we have studied today, find another example word and its meaning.