Roots and Affixes

How words are created

Vocabulary
• English vocabulary include short words like the
article a as well as longer word such as
inextricably and denunciation.
• Short word such as speak and solve are called
base words
• Base words cannot be reduced to smaller parts.
• Other words can be added to them to produce
longer words with various meanings.
Word Parts
• There are two kinds of word parts: roots and
affixes.
• A root is a word part that comes from another
language, such as Greek or Latin.

• An affix is a word part that can be attached to

either a root or a base word to create a new
word.
Affixes
• Affixes can be divided into two categories:
prefixes (appear at the beginning of words) and
suffixes (appear at the end of words).
Common Prefixes Common Suffixes
Bi- two -al adjectival suffix
Anti- against -fy verb suffix
Inter- between -ic adjectival suffix
Pre- before -ion noun suffix
Super- above -ism noun suffix
Trans- across -ize verb suffix
Dis- not -ous adjectival suffix
Check it out
Roots Affixes

Latin Root: tang, Prefix: in-, meaning

meaning “touch” “not”

Greek Root: chrome, Suffix: -ible, meaing

meaning “color” “able to”
Meaning
• The meaning of a word is related to the meaning
of its word parts.
• To unlock the meaning of an unfamiliar word,
break the word down into its component parts;
then think about the meaning of the word’s
affixes and root.
Apply
• For example one could analyze the word
intangible, using the chart shown previously.
• First break the word into its parts:
PREFIX ROOT SUFFIX ENGLISH WORD
In- + tang + -ible = intangible

Tang is a latin roots meaning “touch”

In- is a prefix meaning “not”
-ible is a suffix meaning “able to”
Word Families
• A group of English words may be derived from
the same word part of root. Such a group is
called a word family.
• You can use this knowledge to help you
determine the meaning of unknown words.
• Try this out:
Shared roots: solo, solitary, solitude
Root: sol= ?
Answer: Alone, can you think of other
words in the family?
• Solitare
• Soloist
• Based on your knowledge of the root and the
meaning of other words in the same family, try
to define the meaning of the above words.
• Solitare- a card game played by one person
• Soloist- one who performs alone
Try one:
Words:
• Diminish
• Diminutive
• Minimum

• What do these words have in common?

• Which words do you know?
• What do you think the meaning of the root is?
Word Family Practice Questions:
• Word family: ethnicity, ethnic, ethnographer
Root: ethn
Meaning:
▫ Ocean
▫ Nation
▫ Hesitation
Word Family Practice Questions:
• Word family: maniac, maniacal
Root: mania
Meaning:
▫ Education
▫ Sanitation
▫ Madness
Word Family Practice Questions:
• Word family: epidermis, dermatology
Root: derm
Meaning:
▫ Skin
▫ Body
▫ Mind
Word Family Practice Questions:
• Word Family: laboratory, labor
Root: lab
Meaning:
▫ Work
▫ Good
▫ Weak
Let’s see what you know:
• Divide and indivisible are members of the same
word family. Which root so they share?
A. –vis- B. -visible- C. -div-

• What is the meaning of this root?

A. separate B. shrink C. junk

• What is another member of the same word

family?
A. December B. dividend C. invisible