We will learn in today’s lesson, how to form new words using prefixes and suffixes.
If these two words are new to you, do not worry! We will start our lesson by defining what prefixes and suffixes are. Come on! Let us learn something new step by step.
1 – What is a "PREFIX"?
A PREFIX is a group of letters added to the beginning of a word (the root) to change its meaning.
For example:
We add the prefix "un" to the root "happy" to form a new word "unhappy", which has a different meaning.
👉 In this case, the word "unhappy" is the opposite of "happy".
🔹 Happy / Unhappy
Other Examples:
- Possible → Impossible
- Write → Rewrite
- Like → Dislike
2 – The Most Common Prefixes and Their Meanings
Here is a table showing the most known prefixes, their meanings, and examples:
| Prefix | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| In | Not (for the opposite) | Inconsistent |
| Im | Not (for the opposite) | Immature |
| Dis | Not (for the opposite) | Disappear |
| Un | Not (for the opposite) | Unfinished |
| Mis | Wrongly | Mistake |
| Re | Repeated | Recycle |
| Inter | Between | International |
| Pre | Before | Pre-exam |
| Post | After | Postgraduate |
| Non | Not (for the opposite) | Nonexistent |
| Super | Above | Superstar |
| Sub | Under | Submarine |
| Anti | Against | Antistress |
| Bio | Abbreviation of biology | Biotechnology |
3 – What is a "SUFFIX"?
A SUFFIX is a group of letters added to the end of a word (the root) to change its meaning or grammatical function (e.g., turning a noun into an adjective).
For example:
We add the suffix "-ful" to the root "beauty" to form a new word "beautiful", which changes the word’s grammatical function from a noun to an adjective.
🔹 Beauty (Noun) → Beautiful (Adjective)
Other Examples:
- Happy (Adjective) → Happiness (Noun)
- Slow (Adjective) → Slowly (Adverb)
- Move (Verb) → Movement (Noun)
4 – Word Formation Using Both Prefixes and Suffixes
You can add both a prefix and a suffix to a root word at the same time to form a new word with a different meaning and grammatical function.
For example:
We add the prefix "un" and the suffix "-ful" to the root "success" to form the word "unsuccessful".
🔹 Success → Unsuccessful
Other Examples:
- Believe → Unbelievable
- Understand → Misunderstanding
- Respect → Disrespectful
Task 1: Complete the Table by Adding Prefixes to Form New Words
| Prefix | Root | New Word |
|---|---|---|
| Re | Play | Replay |
| Co | Operate | Cooperate |
| In | Visible | Invisible |
| Dis | Agree | Disagree |
| Super | Man | Superman |
| Ir | Regular | Irregular |
| Over | Estimate | Overestimate |
| Under | Estimate | Underestimate |
| Re | Place | Replace |
| Mis | Place | Misplace |
Task 2: Complete the Table by Adding Suffixes to Form New Words
| Word | Suffix | New Word & Function |
|---|---|---|
| Play (Verb) | -er | Player (Noun) |
| Help (Verb) | -ful | Helpful (Adjective) |
| Kind (Noun) | -ness | Kindness (Noun) |
| Act (Verb) | -ion | Action (Noun) |
| Agree (Verb) | -ment | Agreement (Noun) |
| Easy (Adj.) | -ly | Easily (Adverb) |
| Courage (Noun) | -ous | Courageous (Adjective) |
Task 3: Create New Words Using Prefixes, Suffixes, and Roots
| Prefix | Root | Suffix | New Word |
|---|---|---|---|
| Im | Patient | -ly | Impatiently |
| Over | Complicate | -ed | Overcomplicated |
| Un | Question | -able | Unquestionable |
| Un | Predict | -able | Unpredictable |
| Un | Trust | -worthy | Untrustworthy |
| Inter | Connect | -ness | Interconnectedness |
| Un | Avoid | -able | Unavoidable |
| Non | Tradition | -al | Nontraditional |
| Dis | Advantage | -ous | Disadvantageous |
Task 4: Look at the following list . Using the prefixes, suffixes, and roots , try to form some new words .
The correction of Task 4 :
- un + happy = unhappy
- re + build = rebuild
- mis + understand = misunderstand
- dis + care = discare
- pre + workout = preworkout
- im + patient + ly = impatiently
Task 5: Search for the appropriate missing prefixes or suffixes to complete the sentences . Use The root given to you .
- The movie we watched yesterday was so …………………… (Believe).
- My nurse was so ………………… (Help) during my pregnancy .
- It seems like you ………………….. (Understood) the instructions .
- Celia looks ……………………. (Happy) today . Is she fine ?
- Please drive as ………………. (Slow) as possible , We don't want to get into a car accident .
- Did Sara ……………. (Follow) you on Instragram ? What is wrong with her ?
The correction of task 5 :
- Unbelievable .
- Helpful .
- Misundertood .
- Unhappy .
- Slowly .
- Unfollow .
Task 6 : Sentence Correction : Read the following sentences . Are there any incorrect prefixes or suffixes ? If yes ; correct them .
The correction of task 6 :
Recapitulation of the Lesson
This was everything for today!
The lesson is simple, but you need to practice using prefixes and suffixes to form new words.
For more English lessons, stay tuned!
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