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Objectives:

This chapter will help you recognize and spell:

•Twenty common prefixes•Twenty common suffixes•Twenty common roots

Part Three, A Brief Guide to Important Word SkillsUnderstanding Word Parts

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One way to improve your pronunciation and spellingis to increase your understanding of common word parts.

Prefixes, suffixes and roots are building blocks in formingmany English words.

Increasing your awareness of basic words parts will help youpronounce many unfamiliar words, figure out their meanings,and remember how to spell them.

Word parts are like part of a puzzle.

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Prefixes

Prefix = a word part added to the BEGINNING of a word.

The prefix changes the meaning of some words to their opposites.

mis + understanding

A prefix need not change a word to its opposite, but it will alterthe meaning in some way.

re + view

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Some common prefixes

mono alone, onetrans across, over, beyonddis apart, awaypre beforeinter between, amongsub under, belowex outmis badly, wrongcon together, withpost after, following, later

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Some common prefixes

anti againstpro before, for (in favor of)un not, reversead to, towardsin not, withinextra more thanre again, backmal badcom with, together withde down, from

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Suffixes

Suffix = a word part added to the END of the word.

While a suffix may affect a word’s meaning slightly, it is morelikely to affect how the word is used in a sentence.

Very often, one of several suffixes can be added to a singleword. Understanding common suffixes is especially helpfulwhen you are learning new words.

If you note the suffixes that can be added to a new word, you will learn not just a single word but perhaps three or fourother forms of the word as well.

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Some common suffixes

ion (tion) shipless able (ible)ant (ent) ence (ance)ness ify (fy)en ateize (ise) lyage ious (ous)ist or (er)ment ismful ery (ary)

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Roots

Root = a basic word part to which prefixes, suffixes, or both are added.

Some common roots at times change their spelling slightly,especially in the last one or two letters.

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Some common rootsduc (duct) take, leadmit (miss) send, let goport carryvoc (vok) calltract (trac) drawauto selfpath feelingcept (capt) take, seizedict (dic) say, tell, speakscript (scrib) write

McGraw-Hill © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Some common rootsvers (vert) turntang (tact) touchcess (ced) go, move, yieldsist standgress gopend (pens) hang, weighpsych mindvid (vis) seespec (spic) lookgraph write