Derivational Prefixes and Suffixes

1. Sort the prefixes in the words below into the following seven categories according to meaning:
a. Time
b. Number
c. Place
d. Degree
e. Privative
f. Negative, and
g. Size

Each category has two prefixes. After you have classified the prefixes, use a dictionary to identify
whether the prefix is native English, Latin, or Greek in origin.

postdate maladjusted macrocosm forewarn bifocal outdoor

hyperactivity demilitarize megawatt defrost polyglot
nonentity disclose foreshadow macroeconomics
malpractice polygon bisexual postelection nonsmoker
subway disarm megalosaur outhouse
ultraconservative hyperthyroidism subfloor ultraviolet

2. Sort the suffixes in the words below according to their class-changing function. The categories
include the following:
a. N > N
b. V > N
c. A > N
d. N/A > V
e. N > A
f. V > A
g. N/A > Adv

(There are two examples of each suffix.)

broaden syntactic width idealism participant falsehood

closure straighten rhetorician clockwise refusal vaccinate
gangster stardom warmth tireless twofold trial
accidental selfish advisory likelihood friendless politician
conservatism mobster kingdom facilitate inhabitant contradictory
boyish seizure manifold stepwise thankless global
historic penniless

3. a. Can you think of a reason why -en may attach to some adjectives, but not to others, as
shown below?
blacken broaden stiffen ripen deafen tighten
soften loosen *thinen *longen *slimen *nearen
*slowen *narrowen highen *holyen *noblen
b. Can you think of a reason why -ed may attach to some nouns, but not to others, as shown
below?

brown-haired kind-hearted low-spirited left-handed

narrow-minded strong-headed *brown-coated *heavy-pursed
*long-skirted *one-childed *two-catted *silly-hatted

4. Which is the proper derivation of unknowledgeable? Explain.