Common Prefixes

a-, an-: not, without amoral (not moral), atypical (not typical) ab-, abs-: from, away, off abduct (to take by force), abnormal (away from or apart from the standard) ante-: prior to, in front of, before anterior (placed before), antedate (to proceed in time, come before) anti-, ant-: opposite, opposing, against antibiotic (substance that kills microorganisms), antidote (remedy for counteracting the effects of a poison) circ-, circum-: around, about, on all sides circumference (the outer boundary of a circle), circumstance (the conditions or state of affairs surrounding or affecting an event, a particular incident, or an occurrence) co-, com-, con-: with, together, jointly cooperate (to work together, comply), connect (to bind or fasten together) dis-: away from, apart, reversal, not dismiss (to send away from, eject), disobedient (not obedient) ex-: out, out of, away from exit (go out), expel (to drive out or away) in-: not inaccurate (not accurate), informal (not formal) inter-: between, among, within intercept (to stop someone or something between its starting point and destination), intervene (to come, occur, appear, or lie between two points of time or things)
USING PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES 35

multimedia (the combined use of several media), multiple (having several or many parts or elements) neo-: new, recent, a new form of neonatal (of or relating to a newborn child), neologism (a new word or phrase) non-: not nonfiction (the genre of literature that includes all types of books other than fiction), nonsmoker (someone who does not smoke) poly-: many, much polygamy (the system of having more than one wife at a time), polysyllabic (having three or more syllables) pre-: before precaution (something done in advance to avoid risk), predict (to forecast, make known in advance) re-: back, again rebuild (to build again after destruction), replace (to put back in its former position; to take the place of) sub-: under, beneath, below subdue (to overcome, bring under control), submarine (a ship that can operate under water) super-: above, over, exceeding superb (grand, magnificent, of unusually high quality, excellent), superman (a man with powers exceeding ordinary human

mal-: bad, abnormal, evil, wrong malfunction (to fail to function properly), malpractice (wrongdoing, especially improper or negligent treatment of a patient by a physician) mis-: bad, wrong, ill; opposite or lack of misbehave (to behave badly), misspell (to spell incorrectly) multi-: many, multiple

 Noun Suffixes
-ance, -ence: action, process, or state of adolescence (the state of growing up from childhood to adulthood; the transitional period between youth and maturity), dependence (the state of being dependent) -ian: one who is or does comedian (one who creates comedy), politician (one who seeks or holds a political office) -ion: act or process; state or condition detection (the act of detecting), election (the act or power of electing) -ism: act, practice, or process; state or doctrine of feminism (belief in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes), materialism (the belief that the acquisition of material possessions is the highest good) -ist: one who performs, makes, produces, believes, etc. dentist (one who is trained and licensed to practice dentistry), pianist (one who plays the piano) -ity: quality, state, or degree equality (the state or quality of being equal), fidelity (the quality of being faithful) -sis: process or action diagnosis (the process of identifying the nature or cause of a disease or injury), paralysis (loss of sensation or ability to move or function) -ure: act, process, function enclosure (an area or thing that is enclosed), failure (something that has failed to perform as expected or requested).

Adjective Suffixes
-able, -ible: capable or worthy of; tending or liable to dependable (worthy of being depended on, trustworthy), incredible (not credible; unable to be believed, improbable) -al, -ial, -ical: having the quality of, relating to, or characterized by practical (of or relating to practice or action; useful), ethical (of or relating to ethics or morals) -an, -ian: related to, characteristic of humanitarian (relating to, or characteristic of a humanitarian), vegetarian (relating to vegetarianism) -ic: pertaining or relating to, having the quality of dramatic (of or relating to drama, theatrical), realistic (of or relating to the representation of things as they really are) -ile: having the qualities of fragile (easily broken, damaged, or destroyed; frail), servile (pertaining to or befitting a slave; abjectly submissive, slavish) -ish: having the character of childish (characteristic of, pertaining to, or resembling a child), foolish (devoid of good sense or judgment; exhibiting folly, in the manner of a fool) -ive: performing or tending towards (an action); having the nature of cooperative (marked by a willingness to cooperate; done with or working with others for a common purpose), defensive (serving to defend or protect) -ous, -ose: full of, having the quality of, relating to glorious (having or deserving glory, famous), nauseous (causing nausea, sickening)

TIPS AND STRATEGIES

PREFIX MEANING EXAMPLES The following table lists the most common English language prefixes, their meanings, and examples of words with each prefix.
a-, an- not, without atypical, anarchy, amorphous ab-, abs- from, away, off abnormal, abduct, abscond ante- prior to, in front of, before antedate, antecedent, antebellum ant-, anti- opposite, opposing, against antidote, antagonist, antipathy bi- two, twice bisect, bilateral, bicameral circum- around, about, on all sides circumference, circumnavigate, circumspect co-, com-, with, together, jointly cooperate, community, consensus concontra- against, contrary, contrasting contradict, contraindication counter- contrary, opposite or opposing; counterclockwise, countermeasure, complementary counterpart de- do the opposite or reverse of; remove from, deactivate, dethrone, detract reduce dis- away from, apart, reversal, not disperse, dismiss, disinterested duo- two duo, duet, duality ex- out, out of, away from expel, exclaim, exorbitant in- (also il-, in, into, within induct, impart, inculcate im- ir-) in- (also il-, not invariable, incessant, illicit, inept, im-, ir-) impervious inter- between, among, within intervene, interact, intermittent intra- within, during intramural, intravenous intro- in, into, within introvert, introduction mal- bad, abnormal, evil, wrong malfunction, malpractice, malign mis- bad, wrong, ill; opposite or lack of misspell, miscreant, misanthrope mono- one, single, alone monologue, monogamy, monocle multi- many, multiple multiple, multimillionaire, multifarious neo- new, recent, a new form of neologism, neonatal, neophyte non- not nonconformist, nonentity, nonchalant over- exceeding, surpassing, excessive overabundance, overstimulate poly- many, much polytechnic, polyglot post- after, subsequent, later (than), behind postpone, postpartum, postoperative pre- before precaution, precede, presage pro- (a) earlier, before, prior to; in front of (b) for, proceed, proclivity, profess supporting, in behalf of (c) forward, projecting pseudo- false, fake pseudonym, pseudoscience re- back, again recall, reconcile, rescind semi- half, partly, incomplete semiannual, semiconscious sub- under, beneath, below subconscious, subdue, subjugate super- above, over, exceeding superhero, superficial, supercilious trans- across, beyond, through transmit, translate, translucent tri- three, thrice triangle, tricycle, triumvirate un- not unable, uninterested, unorthodox uni- one unite, uniform, unilateral

A good knowledge of prefixes and suffixes is an invaluable asset when you are building your vocabulary and studying for the TOEFL iBT. Here are some specific tips and strategies to use as you develop this skill and prepare for your test. Take the time to memorize the most common prefixes and suffixes. By memorizing these essential word parts, you will be able to learn new words more quickly and better determine the meaning of unfamiliar words. Use words that you are very familiar with as examples when you study prefixes and suffixes. The more familiar the word is to you (e.g., cooperate), the easier it will be for you to remember the meaning of the prefix or suffix. Remember that you use prefixes and suffixes every day, all the time. Do not feel intimidated by the long lists in this chapter or in Appendix B. You already know much of this material. Remember that prefixes and suffixes alone do not create meaning; rather,they change or add to the meaning of the root word.