Guessing Meanings
from Roots and Affixes
Wipada Prasansaph
([Link]. – TESOL)
Faculty of Education
SSRU Thailand
Besides the guessing meaning from
contexts, we can also guess meanings
of unfamiliar words from the word
parts: roots (stems), prefixes (letters
added to the beginning of a word to
change its meaning), and suffixes
(letters added to the end of a word to
make a new word).
The root of a word expresses the
primary meaning and frequently
appears in combination with
either a prefix or a suffix, or both.
Prefixes and suffixes are called
affixes.
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
ambidextrous
ambi both (able to use both hands
equally well)
aquarium
(a building where people
aqua water
can go to see water
creatures)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
audience
(group of people who have
aud to hear
gathered to listen to a
concert/ watch a play)
benevolent (kind, helpful
bene good
and generous)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
cent one hundred century (one hundred years)
circumference
circum around (a line that goes around a
circle or any curved shape)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
contradict (opposite),
encounter (experience
contra/counter against something (unpleasant)
while you are trying to do
something else)
dictation (the act of
dict to say speaking so that somebody
can write down the word)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
conduct (to lead or organize
duc/duct to lead
an activity)
manufacture (to make or
fac to do; to make
produce)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
reform (to make as a shape
form shape
again)
fortitude
(courage shown by
fort strength somebody who is suffering
great pain or facing great
difficulties)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
fraction (a small part of
fract break
something)
eject
(to push something out
ject throw
suddenly with a lot of
force)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
judicial (connected with a
jud judge court, a judge, or a
judgment)
malnutrition (a poor
mal bad condition of health caused
by lack of food)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
maternity (the state of
mater mother
being/becoming a mother)
Transmit (to send an
mit to send
electronic signal)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
mort death mortal (be able to die)
multimedia (the condition
of using several kinds of
multi many
media to produce
something)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
paternity (the fact of being
pater father
a father of a child)
portable (to be able to be
port to carry
carried)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
bankrupt (without enough
rupt to break money to pay what you
owe)
inscription (words written
scrib/script to write in front of a book or cut in
stone or metal)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
bisect (to divide something
sect/sec to cut
into two equal parts)
consent (permission to do
sent to feel; to send
something)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
spect to look inspect (to look closely)
restructure (to organize
struct to build system of something in a
new way)
Common Latin Roots
Latin Root Definition Example
vivid (producing very clear
vid/vis to see
picture in your mind)
voc voice; to call vocalist ( a singer)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
philanthropy (the practice
man; human; of helping the poor and
anthropo
humanity those in need, especially by
giving money)
autobiography (the story of
auto self a person’s life written by
that person)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
biology (the study of living
bio life
things)
chronological (the
chron time arrangement according to
the time order)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
dynamite (powerful
dyna power
explosive)
dyslexia (a slight disorder
of brain that causes
dys bad; hard; unlucky
difficulty in reading and
spelling)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
epigram ( a short poem or
phrase that expresses an
gram thing written
idea in a clever or amusing
way)
epigraph (a line of writing
short phrase on a building
graph writing or statue, or as an
introduction to part of a
book)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
heterogeneous (consisting
hetero different of many kinds of people or
things)
homogenous (consisting of
homo same people or things that are all
the same)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
hydration (making
hydr water
something absorb water)
hyperactive (too much
hyper over; above; beyond
active)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
hypothermia ( a medical
condition in which the body
hypo below; beneath
temperature is much lower
than normal)
astrology (the study of the
positions of stars in the
logy study of
belief that they influence
human affair)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
thermometer (a device for
meter/metr measure
measuring temperature)
microscope (an instrument
micro small used for examining very
small living things)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
misanthrope ( a person who
mis/miso hate hates and avoid other
people)
monologue (a speech made
mono one
by one person)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
morphology (the forms of
morph form; shape
words)
antonym (a word with opposite
meaning with another word)
nym name
synonym (a word with the same
meaning with another word
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
philosophy (the love of
phil love
wisdom)
claustrophobia (an extreme
phobia fear fear of being in small
confined place)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
photosynthesis
(the process by which green plants
photo/phos light turn carbon dioxide and water into
food using energy obtained from
light from the sun)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
pseudonym
(a name used by somebody,
pseudo false
especially a writer, instead of
their real name)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
psychology (the study of
psycho soul; spirit
mind and spirit)
telescope
scope viewing instrument (an instrument using to
observe faraway objects)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
technique (a particular way of
doing something especially
techno art; science; skill
one in which you have to
learn special skills)
Common Greek Roots
Greek Root Definition Example
telephone (an instrument
you use to speak with
tele far off
someone who is far from
you)
thermal (connected with
therm heat
heat)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
antigovernment (having
anti- against ideas against the
government)
devalue (lower the value of
de- opposite
something)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
disorganized (not
dis- not; opposite of
organized, messy)
en-, em- cause to empower (to give power to)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
foreshadow (to be a sign of
fore- before; front of something that will happen
in the future)
income
in-, im- in
(money you receive)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
indirect (not direct way),
immoral (not in good way)
in-, im-, il-, ir- not
illiterate (cannot read or write),
irreverent (not connected)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
interrupt (speak between/
inter- between; among
among a conversation)
midfield (the central part of a
mid- middle
sport field)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
mis- wrongly misspell (spell wrongly)
non- not nonviolent (not violent)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
over- over; too much overeat (eat too much)
preview (look before you
pre- before
do something else)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
re- again rewrite (write again)
semicircle
semi- half; partly; not fully
(one half of a circle)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
subway (the train running
sub- under
under the ground)
superhuman ( a human with
super- above; beyond much greater power or
knowledge than normal)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
transfer ( to move from one
trans- across
place to another)
unusual (strange, not
un- not; opposite of
normal)
Common Prefixes
Prefix Definition Example
underestimate (to think or
guess that the amount, size,
under- under; too little
or cost of something is
lower than it really is)
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
affordable (be able to afford
-able, -ible is; can be
something)
universal (having the
-al, -ial having characteristics of characteristics of the
universe, of the universe)
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
past tense verbs;
-ed any regular past verbs
adjectives
-en made of golden (made of gold)
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
one who; teacher (the person who
-er, -or
person connected with teach)
comparative degree
-er more
adverbs/ adjectives
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
superlative degree adverbs/
-est the most
adjectives
-ful full of helpful (full of help)
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
verb forms;
-ing verbs with –ing ending
present participles
-ion, -tion, -ation, -
act; process edition (the act of editing)
ition
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
activity (the state of being
-ity, -ty state of
active)
adjective form of talkative (talking very
-ive, -ative, -itive
nouns/ verbs much)
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
-less without hopeless (without hope)
dangerously (with
-ly how something is
dangerous manner)
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
movement (the act of
-ment state of being; act of
moving)
happiness (the state of
-ness state of; condition of
being happy)
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
courageous (having
-ous, -eous, -ious having qualities of
qualities of courage)
-s, -es more than one plural nouns with –s/-es
Common Suffixes
Suffix Definition Example
gloomy (nearly dark in the
-y characterized by way that makes you feel
sad)
Find the base meanings
of the words on the right hand side.
Base Meaning Words
______1. many A. polytechnic, polyclinic,
polygamy
______2. one B. microscope, microeconomics,
microorganism
______3. small C. uniform, unicycle, unisex
Find the base meanings
of the words on the right hand side.
Base Meaning Words
______4. between D. superman, supermarket,
supernatural
______5. wrong E. subway, subconscious,
subordinate
______6. under F. misbehave, misspell,
misunderstand
______7. above G. interrupt, interfere,
intersection
Find the base meanings
of the words on the right hand side.
Base Meaning Words
______8. build H. claustrophobia, xenophobia,
acrophobia
______9. around I. construction, destruction,
restructure
______10. fear J. circumstance, circumlocution,
circumference
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• In many countries, women are
subordinate to men.
a. living together
b. living separately
c. having less power
d. having more power
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• Rose chose Anthropology as her
major study.
a. the study of stars
b. the study of plants
c. the study of the universe
d. the study of human race
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• In some societies, polygamy is
accepted.
a. having many children
b. having more than one wives
c. getting married only in the name
d. getting married with a foreigner
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• People gathered around the famous
Korean singer and asked for his
autograph.
a. signature
b. personal belonging
c. the writing about himself
d. speech about his experience
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• Politicians often use hyperbole and
accuse other politicians of using
hyperbole.
a. using impolite words
b. using luxurious words
c. speaking beyond the true story
d. speaking to many foreign words
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• Bob is an ambidextrous person, but I
am left-handed.
a. able to use both hands well
b. able to write by the left hand
c. able to eat with both hands
d. able to swim with one hand
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• The school principal is ready for the
inspection.
a. written form of a book
b. giving a formal speech
c. deep examination (of the school)
d. performance before the real one
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• Rose has to use the circumlocution
technique to communicate with Mr. Jones.
a. the use of many tools to help her
b. the use of technology to communicate
c. the use of many words to describe one
idea
d. the use of symbols to represent the ideas
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• The devaluation of the Baht in the 1997
economic crisis caused a lot of problems at
that time.
a. increasing the value
b. decreasing the value
c. equating the value of the Baht with other
currency
d. exchanging the value of the Baht with
other currency
Guess the meaning of the underlined word
without looking at the dictionary.
• I always use the pseudonym when I
write short stories.
a. the false name
b. the real name
c. the name of other people
d. the name of a famous person
Thank you and good bye.
