![]() ![]() The secret is in knowing how combining different prefixes and suffixes with a root word makes new words. The secret to increasing your vocabulary is not by memorizing a lot of words. Not all derived words have both a prefix and a suffix, many will have one or the other, some will use just the root word and others will combine two root words, as in ‘manuscript’ and ‘astronaut.’ Man- is the Latin root for ‘hand’ and script is the Latin root ‘to write.’ Astro is the Greek word for ‘star’ and ‘naut’ means sailor. Inter- means ‘between’, -ion is ‘the act of’ and ‘POSIT’ is from Latin meaning‘to place.’ Therefore, ‘interposition’ literally means ‘the act of placing between.’ Another example is the word "antipathy." The prefix is ‘ANTI-’, the Greek root word is ‘PATH’ and the suffix is ‘-Y.’ Anti- means ‘against’, the suffix,-y, is ‘the state of’ and PATH means ‘to feel.’ Antipathy therefore means ‘the state of feeling against’. For example, take the word "interposition." The prefix is ‘INTER-’, the suffix is ‘–ION’ and the root word is ‘POSIT’. Since you have encountered the word in context, you can then guess at its present meaning. Try to get a feel for the ETYMOLOGY of these words.īy breaking a word apart into root, prefix and suffix, you will be able to determine its literal meaning. Many were borrowed straight from the Greek language, but most were combined with Latin to make additional words with similar but distinctive meanings. The Romans also combined prefixes and roots to derive new words. When you use your dictionary, pay close attention to the Latin or Greek words from which they are derived. Many will not have the same exact meaning as the original Latin or Greek words but they will be close. Put them on your index cards the word on the front and definitions on the back. Look these words up in your dictionary to get all the definitions. The most important of these derived words are in CAPITALIZED BOLD print. These are all words you must know in order to excel on the PSAT, SAT I and GRE, to do well in college and to have a successful career. Most of these words are used in medicine, law, business, science and technology. If you learn all of them (both the caps and non-caps roots), you can double this to 10,000 additional words. By memorizing these 100 CAPITALIZED Latin and Greek prefixes, suffixes and roots, you will have a short cut to sight read an additional 5,000 words. They are the ones in all CAPITAL letters. The 100 most common Latin and Greek roots figure in more than 5,000 English derivatives just beyond the average person’s vocabulary of 10,000 words. Vocabulary Builder (500 will get you 5000) ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |