Prefix Meaning Sample Words and Definitions
a- not, without Achromatic- without colour.
an- Anhydrous- without water.
a- on afire- on fire.
aside- on the side.
ad- to, toward accelerate- to increase the speed of. (Latin celer,
swift/immediate).
aggravate- make (a problem, injury, or offence)
worse or more serious. (Latin gravis, heavy).
ab- away, off absent- away, not present.
abnormal- away from normal.
ambi- both ambidextrous- able to use both hands equally.
ana- up, back, against anatomy- study of bodily structure.
(Etymologically- the cutting up of a plant or
animal to determine its structure).
anachronism- not being in the right place or time.
ante- before, in front ante cede- to come before something in time.
anteroom- room located in front of another.
anti- against antibody- a substance that destroys micro-
organisms.
auto- self autocrat- a person who governs with absolute
power.
bi- two biannual- happening twice a year.
circum- around circumspect- looking around.
co- with, together co-author- writer who collaborates with another
con- author.
com-
col-
contra- against contradict- to argue against.
counter- against, in opposition, counteract- to oppose the effects of an action.
corresponding counterpart- equivalent, प्रतिरूप.
de- i. off, remove, reduce, away decelerate- to slow down.
dethrone- to remove from power.
ii. not, do the opposite of, defrost-
undo
iii. down: down to the bottom, denote- indicate. Latin notare, note.
totally, completely,
thoroughly.
dec- ten decade- ten years.
deca-
deka-
deci- one tenth decimal- a fraction whose denominator is a
power of ten.
di- two dilemma- a situation that requires a choice
between two alternatives.
dis- apart, away, not, to the dismiss- to send away from, eject.
opposite disappear- to move out of sight.
dia- through diameter- a straight line passing from side to
side through the centre of a body or figure,
especially a circle or sphere.
diagonal- a straight line joining two opposite
corners of a square, rectangle, or other straight-
sided shape. gon- angle.
octagon- a polygon with 8 angles.
du- two, twice duplicate- make an identical copy.
duo- duet- a musical composition for two voices or
instruments.
dys- abnormal, bad dyspepsia- indigestion.
e- out, away exit- to go out.
ex- eloquent- fluent in speaking.
em- into, cause empathy- intention to feel like another person.
en- empower- put into power.
to encourage- to cause sb to have courage.
endo- within, inside endogamy- the custom to marry within one’s
clan, tribe.
en- inside, inwards envision- to picture in the mind.
in- enclose- lock inside.
epi- on, upon, over, outside epidermis- the outer layer of the skin.
epilogue- a short speech delivered after a play.
equ- equal equidistant- an equal distant from two points.
equi-
extra- outside, beyond extraordinary- beyond ordinary.
extro-
fore- in front of, previous, earlier forecast- a preview of events to be.
hect- hundred hectolitre- 100 litres.
helic- spiral, circular helicopter- an aircraft with horizontal rotating
helico- wing.
helix- a spiral form.
hemi- half, partial hemisphere- one half of the earth.
hepta- seven heptagon- a shape with seven angles and seven
sides.
hetero- different, other heterogeneous- made up of unrelated parts.
hex- six hexagon- a shape with six angles.
hexa-
homo- like, alike, same homogeneous- of same kind or nature.
homeo- homeopathy- a therapy that is based on treating
“same with same”.
hyper- too much, over, excessive, hypertension- high blood pressure.
beyond hyperactive- very restless.
hypo- under hypoglycaemia- an abnormally low level of sugar.
Greek glukus: sweet.
in- in, into, not, without illuminate- to give light to.
invention- creation.
latin ven/vent/venu- to come.
illegal- not legal
infra- beneath, below infrastructure- underlying framework of a system.
inter- between international- involving two or more countries.
intra- within, inside introvert- shy person who keeps within
intro- him/herself.
ir- not irrational- not rational/logical.
iso- equal equal isometric- having equal dimension.
kilo- thousand kilogram- 1000 grams.
macro- large, great macroeconomics- study of overall forces of
economy.
magn- large, great magnify- to make larger.
magna- magnate- a powerful person.
magni-
mal- bad, ill, wrong, evil malfunction- fail to function properly.
male- malediction- curse.
mis- bad, wrong, to hate misbehave- to behave badly.
mega- great, large megastructure- huge building or other structure.
micro- small, short, minute microscope- a device to see very small things.
milli- one-thousandth millimetre- one thousandth of a meter.
min- small, less mini- something that is very small.
multi- many, more than one multitasking- doing many things at once.
neo- new, recent neonatal- relating to a new born child.
non- not nonfiction- the genre of literature that includes all
types of books other than fiction.
ob- to, towards obligation- an act or course of action to which a
person is morally or legally bound; a duty or
commitment.
Latin ligare, bind, (ligament, religion).
क़ानूनी ब़ाध्यि़ा य़ा कितव्य-भ़ावऩा, य़ा वचनबद् घि़ा
ob- against, in the way obstacle- barrier, hurdle.
octa- eight octagon.
omni- all omnipotent- with all the power.
omniscient- knowing all the things.
omnivorous- eating all foods.
poly- many polychrome- with many colours.
post- after, behind postscript- an addition to an already completed
document.
Postpone- carry over, reschedule.
Posterior- further back in position; back.
pre- earlier, beforehand: in prepare- to get ready in advance.
advance, in front of prediction- a statement foretelling the future.
premolar teeth-
pro- Earlier than: prior to: before, prologue- a passage before the main part.
forward Greek logos, saying.
Projecting- protruding, extending outwards.
quad- four quadrant- each of the four quarters of a circle.
re- again, back rewind- to wind something backward.
retro- backward retrospect- the remembering of past events.
se- apart secede- to formally break away from.
Latin cede, to go/ yield, exceed.
segregate- set apart from the rest.
Latin greg- grex-, a flock.
semi- half, partial Semi-annual: every half year.
sub- under, lower than, inferior to substandard- inferior to accepted standards.
super- higher in quality or quantity superior- above average.
syn- sym- with, together symmetry- similarity in size.
syl-
un- not unfriendly- lacking friendliness.
uni- one, single unity- the state of being united or joined as a
whole.
