Prefixes and suffixes are essential for building a strong English vocabulary. These word parts, when added to the beginning or end of a root word, create new words and meanings. Mastering prefixes and suffixes not only enhances your understanding of word formation but also strengthens your overall grasp of the language. Expanding your vocabulary through these word elements allows you to communicate more effectively in both writing and speech.
Prefixes and suffixes
A prefix is a group of letters that is put before a word to form a new word with a new meaning.
| Prefix | Word | New word |
| Re | think | Rethink |
| Mis | behave | Misbehave |
| Semi | circle | Semicircle |
| Im | possible | Impossible |
| Pre | view | Preview |
| Dis | obey | Disobey |
| In | justice | Injustice |
| Tri | cycle | Tricycle |
| Un | able | Unable |
| ir | relevant | Irrelevant |
A suffix is a group of letters that is added after a word to form a new word with a new meaning.
| Word | Suffix | New word |
| Collect | ion | Collection |
| Kind | ness | Kindness |
| Hard | en | Harden |
| Hope | ful | Hopeful |
| Follow | er | Follower |
| Convert | ible | Convertible |
| Bad | ly | Badly |
| Beak | able | Breakable |
| Care | less | Careless |
| Enjoy | ment | Enjoyment |
Here are meanings of some common prefixes and suffixes.
| Prefix | Meaning | Example |
| Anti- | against | antinarcotics |
| Dis- | not or removal | disappear, dismount |
| Inter- | between | interact |
| Non- | without | nonfat |
| Pre- | before | preview |
| semi- | half | semicircle |
| Un- | opposite | unhappy |
| Post- | after | postwar |
| Tri- | three | tricycle |
| Suffix | Meaning | Example |
| -able | capable of being | solvable |
| -less | without | motionless |
| -ful | full of | cheerful |
| -en | to do, made of, become | fasten, woolen, strengthen |
| -ness | state of being | heaviness |
| -holic | one who is obsessed | workaholic |
| -tion | state or quality of | attention |
| -ist | profession | artist |
| -ment | action or process of | movement |
| -fy | the process of making into | amplify |
Some more examples
| Prefixes | Suffixes |
| Antisocial | Loudly |
| Defrost | Believable |
| Misjudge | Stronger |
| Impure | Wooden |
| Disown | Joyous |
| Explode | Delightful |
| Proactive | Reversible |
| Prepaid | Direction |
| Incorrect | Restless |
| Unusual | Softness |
FAQs
A prefix is a group of letters added to the beginning of a word to change its meaning.
Examples:
Un-: means “not” → Unkind (not kind)
Re-: means “again” → Rewrite (write again)
A suffix is a group of letters added to the end of a word to change its form or meaning.
Examples:
-ful: means “full of” → Hopeful (full of hope)
-less: means “without” → Careless (without care)
List of Prefixes
Un-: means “not” → Unhappy (not happy)
Re-: means “again” → Redo (do again)
Pre-: means “before” → Preheat (heat before)
Dis-: means “not” → Dislike (not like)
Mis-: means “wrong” → Misplace (put in the wrong place)
List of Suffixes
-ful: means “full of” → Joyful (full of joy)
-less: means “without” → Hopeless (without hope)
-ly: means “in a certain way” → Quickly (in a quick way)
-ness: means “state of being” → Kindness (state of being kind)
-able: means “able to” → Lovable (able to be loved)
A prefix in a name is a title added before the name. Examples: Mr. John Smith, Dr. Emily Brown, Miss Sarah Johnson.
A suffix in a name is a title added after the name. Examples: Robert King Jr., David Lee Sr., James Carter III.
In short, a prefix comes before the name, and a suffix comes after the name.
12 Examples of Prefixes and Suffixes
Prefixes:
Un-: not → Unhappy (not happy)
Re-: again → Rewrite (write again)
Pre-: before → Preheat (heat before)
Dis-: not → Dislike (not like)
Mis-: wrong → Misunderstand (understand wrongly)
In-: not → Inactive (not active)
Suffixes:
7. -ful: full of → Joyful (full of joy)
8. -less: without → Careless (without care)
9. -ly: in a certain way → Quickly (in a quick way)
10. -ness: state of being → Kindness (being kind)
11. -able: able to → Readable (able to be read)
12. -er: one who → Writer (one who writes)
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Prefixes and Suffixes
Prefix or suffix?
In 'unhappy', 'un-' is a ___ .
'Un-' attaches to the front of the root, so it is a prefix.
a prefix attaches to the front
unhappy
Prefix or suffix?
In 'kindness', '-ness' is a ___ .
'-ness' attaches to the end of the root, so it is a suffix.
a suffix attaches to the end
kindness
What does the prefix mean?
In 'rewrite', 're-' means ___ .
'Re-' means 'again', so 'rewrite' means write again.
're-' means again
rewrite = write again
What does the prefix mean?
In 'disagree', 'dis-' means ___ .
'Dis-' reverses the root, so 'disagree' means not agree.
'dis-' means not/opposite
disagree = not agree
What class does the suffix create?
Adding '-ly' to 'quick' makes 'quickly', which is a(n) ___ .
'-ly' turns the adjective 'quick' into the adverb 'quickly'.
'-ly' often forms adverbs
quick -> quickly
What does the prefix mean?
In 'preview', 'pre-' means ___ .
'Pre-' means 'before', so 'preview' means view before.
'pre-' means before
preview = view before
What class does the suffix create?
Adding '-ful' to 'care' makes 'careful', which is a(n) ___ .
'-ful' turns the noun 'care' into the adjective 'careful'.
'-ful' often forms adjectives
care -> careful
What does the prefix mean?
In 'misread', 'mis-' means ___ .
'Mis-' means 'wrongly', so 'misread' means read wrongly.
'mis-' means wrongly
misread = read wrongly
True or false?
A prefix is added to the beginning of a word and a suffix to the end.
Prefixes attach to the front and suffixes to the end of a root.
prefix: front; suffix: end
un- + kind + -ness
What class does the suffix create?
Adding '-tion' to 'educate' makes 'education', which is a(n) ___ .
'-tion' turns the verb 'educate' into the noun 'education'.
'-tion' often forms nouns
educate -> education
What does the prefix mean?
In 'overcook', 'over-' means ___ .
'Over-' means 'too much', so 'overcook' means cook too much.
'over-' means too much
overcook = cook too much
What does the suffix mean?
In 'hopeless', '-less' means ___ .
'-less' means 'without', so 'hopeless' means without hope.
'-less' means without
hopeless = without hope
Add a prefix.
Add a prefix to 'possible' to mean 'not possible': ___ possible.
'Im-' means 'not' before 'possible', forming 'impossible'.
'im-' means not
impossible = not possible
What class does the suffix create?
Adding '-er' to 'teach' makes 'teacher', which is a(n) ___ .
'-er' turns the verb 'teach' into a noun for the doer.
'-er' can form a doer noun
teach -> teacher
What does the prefix mean?
In 'incorrect', 'in-' means ___ .
'In-' means 'not', so 'incorrect' means not correct.
'in-' can mean not
incorrect = not correct
What class does the suffix create?
Adding '-able' to 'read' makes 'readable', which is a(n) ___ .
'-able' turns the verb 'read' into the adjective 'readable'.
'-able' often forms adjectives
read -> readable
Which word has a prefix meaning 'not'?
Choose the word with a prefix meaning 'not'.
'Un-' in 'unfair' means 'not', so 'unfair' means not fair.
'un-' can mean not
unfair = not fair
True or false?
Suffixes can change a word from one part of speech to another.
A suffix can turn a verb into a noun or an adjective into an adverb.
suffixes can change word class
educate -> education
What does the suffix mean?
In 'joyful', '-ful' means ___ .
'-ful' means 'full of', so 'joyful' means full of joy.
'-ful' means full of
joyful = full of joy
Identify the root.
In 'unbreakable', the root word is ___ .
'Break' is the root; 'un-' and '-able' attach to it.
the root remains after removing affixes
un- + break + -able
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