Prefix Meaning Examples: Here Is A List of The Most Common Prefixes

Here is a list of the most common prefixes:
PREFIX MEANING EXAMPLES
ante- before antenatal, anteroom, antedate
anti- against, opposing antibiotic, antidepressant, antidote
circum- around circumstance, circumvent, circumnavigate
co- with co-worker, co-pilot, co-operation
de- off, down, away from devalue, defrost, derail, demotivate
dis- opposite of, not disagree, disappear, disintegrate, disapprove
em-, en- cause to, put into embrace, encode, embed, enclose, engulf
epi- upon, close to, after epicentre, episcope, epidermis
ex- former, out of ex-president, ex-boyfriend, exterminate
extra- beyond, more than extracurricular, extraordinary, extra-terrestrial
fore- before forecast, forehead, foresee, foreword, foremost
homo- same homosexual, homonuclear, homoplastic
hyper- over, above hyperactive, hyperventilate
il-, im-, in-, ir- not impossible, illegal, irresponsible, indefinite
im-, in- into insert, import, inside
infra- beneath, below infrastructure, infrared, infrasonic, infraspecific
inter-, intra- between interact, intermediate, intergalactic, intranet
macro- large macroeconomics, macromolecule
micro- small microscope, microbiology, microfilm, microwave
mid- middle midfielder, midway, midsummer
mis- wrongly misinterpret, misfire, mistake, misunderstand
mono- one, singular monotone, monobrow, monolithic
1
PREFIX MEANING EXAMPLES
non- not, without nonsense, nonentity, nondescript
omni- all, every omnibus, omnivore, omnipotent
para- beside parachute, paramedic, paradox
post- after post-mortem, postpone, post-natal
pre- before prefix, predetermine, pre-intermediate
re- again return, rediscover, reiterate, reunite
semi- half semicircle, semi-final, semiconscious
sub- under submerge, submarine, sub-category, subtitle
super- above, over superfood, superstar, supernatural, superimpose
therm- heat thermometer, thermostat, thermodynamic
trans- across, beyond transport, transnational, transatlantic
tri- three triangle, tripod, tricycle
un- not unfinished, unfriendly, undone, unknown
uni- one unicycle, universal, unilateral, unanimous
2
Suffixes
A suffix is a letter or a group of letters that is usually attached to the end

of a word to form a new word, as well as alter the way it functions
grammatically.
Depending on whether it is a noun, verb, adjective or adverb, a different

suffix would be required. For example, the verb read can be altered to
become the noun reader by adding the suffix -er. The same verb can also
be turned into the adjective readable by adding the suffix –able.
It is just as important to understand the definitions of suffixes as prefixes,

because they too help us to deduce the meanings of any new words that
we learn. I have listed some of the most common suffixes below:
SUFFIX MEANING EXAMPLE
NOUN
SUFFIXES
-acy state or quality democracy, accuracy, lunacy
-al the action or process of remedial, denial, trial, criminal
-ance, -ence state or quality of nuisance, ambience, tolerance
-dom place or state of being freedom, stardom, boredom
-er, -or person or object that does a reader, creator, interpreter, inventor,
specified action collaborator, teacher
3
-ism doctrine, belief Judaism, scepticism, escapism
-ist person or object that does a Geologist, protagonist, sexist,

specified action scientist, theorist, communist
-ity, -ty quality of extremity, validity, enormity
-ment condition enchantment, argument
-ness state of being heaviness, highness, sickness
-ship position held friendship, hardship, internship
-sion, -tion state of being position, promotion, cohesion
VERB SUFFIXES
-ate become mediate, collaborate, create
-en become sharpen, strengthen, loosen
-ify, -fy make or become justify, simplify, magnify, satisfy
-ise, -ize become publicise, synthesise, hypnotise
ADJECTIVE
SUFFIXES
4
-able, -ible capable of being edible, fallible, incredible, audible
-al having the form or character fiscal, thermal, herbal, colonial

of
-esque in a manner of or resembling picturesque, burlesque, grotesque
-ful notable for handful, playful, hopeful, skilful
-ic, -ical having the form or character psychological, hypocritical,

of methodical, nonsensical, musical
-ious, -ous characterised by pious, jealous, religious, ridiculous
-ish having the quality of squeamish, sheepish, childish
-ive having the nature of inquisitive, informative, attentive
-less without meaningless, hopeless, homeless
-y characterised by dainty, beauty, airy, jealousy
ADVERB
SUFFIXES
-ly related to or quality softly, slowly, happily, crazily, madly
-ward, -wards direction towards, afterwards, backwards,

inward
5
-wise in relation to otherwise, likewise, clockwise
So as you can see, affixes can dramatically change the definitions of

words. Knowing the various prefixes and suffixes along with their
meanings can really help you to understand how words are used, and also
how they should be spelt.
Although these groups of letters (affixes) are important and assist with
forming words, they are not words in their own right and cannot stand
alone in a sentence.
If they are printed or written alone, then they should have a hyphen
before or after them to demonstrate that they are to be attached to other
letters to form words (the way I have listed them in the above tables).

Prefix Meaning Examples: Here Is A List of The Most Common Prefixes

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Here is a list of the most common prefixes:

PREFIX MEANING EXAMPLES

ante- before antenatal, anteroom, antedate

anti- against, opposing antibiotic, antidepressant, antidote

circum- around circumstance, circumvent, circumnavigate

co- with co-worker, co-pilot, co-operation

de- off, down, away from devalue, defrost, derail, demotivate

dis- opposite of, not disagree, disappear, disintegrate, disapprove

epi- upon, close to, after epicentre, episcope, epidermis

ex- former, out of ex-president, ex-boyfriend, exterminate

extra- beyond, more than extracurricular, extraordinary, extra-terrestrial

fore- before forecast, forehead, foresee, foreword, foremost

homo- same homosexual, homonuclear, homoplastic

hyper- over, above hyperactive, hyperventilate

il-, im-, in-, ir- not impossible, illegal, irresponsible, indefinite

im-, in- into insert, import, inside

infra- beneath, below infrastructure, infrared, infrasonic, infraspecific

inter-, intra- between interact, intermediate, intergalactic, intranet

macro- large macroeconomics, macromolecule

micro- small microscope, microbiology, microfilm, microwave

mid- middle midfielder, midway, midsummer

mis- wrongly misinterpret, misfire, mistake, misunderstand

mono- one, singular monotone, monobrow, monolithic

non- not, without nonsense, nonentity, nondescript

omni- all, every omnibus, omnivore, omnipotent

para- beside parachute, paramedic, paradox

post- after post-mortem, postpone, post-natal

pre- before prefix, predetermine, pre-intermediate

re- again return, rediscover, reiterate, reunite

semi- half semicircle, semi-final, semiconscious

sub- under submerge, submarine, sub-category, subtitle

super- above, over superfood, superstar, supernatural, superimpose

therm- heat thermometer, thermostat, thermodynamic

trans- across, beyond transport, transnational, transatlantic

tri- three triangle, tripod, tricycle

un- not unfinished, unfriendly, undone, unknown

uni- one unicycle, universal, unilateral, unanimous

A suffix is a letter or a group of letters that is usually attached to the end

Depending on whether it is a noun, verb, adjective or adverb, a different

It is just as important to understand the definitions of suffixes as prefixes,

SUFFIX MEANING EXAMPLE

-acy state or quality democracy, accuracy, lunacy

-al the action or process of remedial, denial, trial, criminal

-ance, -ence state or quality of nuisance, ambience, tolerance

-dom place or state of being freedom, stardom, boredom

-ism doctrine, belief Judaism, scepticism, escapism

-ist person or object that does a Geologist, protagonist, sexist,

-ity, -ty quality of extremity, validity, enormity

-ment condition enchantment, argument

-ness state of being heaviness, highness, sickness

-ship position held friendship, hardship, internship

-sion, -tion state of being position, promotion, cohesion

-ate become mediate, collaborate, create

-en become sharpen, strengthen, loosen

-ify, -fy make or become justify, simplify, magnify, satisfy

-ise, -ize become publicise, synthesise, hypnotise

-able, -ible capable of being edible, fallible, incredible, audible

-al having the form or character fiscal, thermal, herbal, colonial

-esque in a manner of or resembling picturesque, burlesque, grotesque