Guessing the Meanings of Words from Root

Guessing
the Meanings
of Words
from Root

SIRIWAN R.

Affixes and the Roots

The Romans and the Greeks came up with a system of combining
word parts to make other words. The parts are affixes and
roots. Affixes (called affixes because they “affix” or attach
one word part to another word part) are made up of prefixes
and suffixes. The root is the main part of a word, onto which
one or both kinds of affixes may attach.

In this section you will learn about prefixes and
suffixes (the affixes), and in the next section, you will
learn about the part of the word that they get attached
to: the root. Every English word has at least one root but
could have more than one prefix or suffix as in the words
indestructible and unconvincingly. The prefixes in- and
de- and un- and con- appear in the words indestructible
and unconvincingly, and the suffixes -ible and -ing and
-ly in the words indestructible and unconvincingly. Keep
in mind that most prefixes, suffixes, and roots derive
their meanings from Latin (L), Greek (Gr), and Anglo-Saxon
(AS), so keep your eye out for the abbreviations above to
learn where the words we use every day started.

Throughout this lesson, keep in mind that paying attention to
the parts of words can be an invaluable tool in your reading
comprehension toolkit. One way to use this strategic tool for
understanding unfamiliar vocabulary is to divide the word into
parts.

Prefixes

Pre- means “before,” so it makes sense that this affix
gets placed in front of a word’s root.

What if you want to make up a word that means
“to cook something a little before adding
another ingredient”? You know the word “cook,”
but what prefix could you add in front of it to
make it mean what you want it to mean?

pre- (L for before) + cook = precook

If you are not happy, what prefix could you
add to the word “happy” to express how you feel?

un- (AS for not) + happy = unhappy

If your mom likes chocolate but not the really
sweet kind, what is a word you can use to tell
someone what kind of chocolate she prefers?

semi- (L for half) + sweet = semisweet

Suffixes

The other type of affix is a suffix. Whereas a prefix is
attached to the beginning of a word, a suffix appears at the
end of a word and gives the word a different inflection or
meaning.

However, not all suffixes are created equal. Some suffixes
don’t change the meaning of the original word. In “Every
day I walk to school” and “Yesterday I walked to school,”
the words “walk” and “walked” have the same basic meaning.
In “I have one car” and “I have two cars,” the basic
meaning of the words “car” and “cars” is almost exactly
the same.

That said, hundreds of suffixes in the English language do change the
meaning of the root word when attached, and like prefixes, often come
from ancient languages. Keep in mind that the overall goal in learning
how words are built on ancient languages is to provide you with another
tool to use when figuring out unfamiliar words.

Below is an example of a suffix that changes a word’s

meaning when added to the end.

neur + -ology (L for the study of) = neurology

root + suffix = new word meaning a branch of medicine

concerned especially with the structure,

functions, and diseases of the

nervous system

Making Meaning

So far in this lesson, we have been talking about the word parts
that come before (prefixes) and after (suffixes) roots of words.
In a way, we have been saving the best for last because without
roots, there would be no words at all.

The root or stem of a word is the most important
part. Let’s look at the suffix -ology from the Latin
word logia referring to “the study of” or “a branch
of knowledge.” You wouldn’t tell your friend about
your sudden interest in “ology.” They wouldn’t know
how to respond, but if you were to talk about the
test you aced in “anthropology,” they might just slap
you on the back in celebration. That’s because you
added to your suffix the root word anthro (from the
Greek anthropos, meaning “man” or “humankind”). Of
course, the word anthropology isn’t the only word
that can be formed using the root anthro. A few more
are shown below. Notice that the root of the word
does not always come first.

Exercise

1. After having lost his cell phone last year, he now
{consciously,science,subconscious} places his new phone in his
pocket.
2. In {consciously,science,unconscious} , we are studying biology,
electricity, and cells.
3. The worker was {consciously,science,unconscious} after his fall
from the tower.

REFERENCE

https://www.texasgateway.org/resource/understand-new-
vocabulary-using-roots-and-affixes