CHAPTER 1

WORD CLASSES

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to identify parts of

speech, prefix, and suffix.

“There are no secrets to success. It is the result of

preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.”
(Colin Powell)
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1 WORD CLASSES
Reading
1. Read the following text thoroughly.

CLIMATE CHAOS

For inhabitants of the Arctic, global warming is

more than just a scientific debate about a distant
threat. It is an everyday reality. The ice is getting
thinner, and animals that farm an integral part of the
local diet are moving further north. The ground,
once permanently frozen, is beginning to melt,
causing major damage to houses and roads.
John Chugiak, an environmental campaigner
from Banks Island in the far north of Canada, wants
the world to wake up to the problem. “Our traditional
lifestyle has already changed due to global
warming”, he says, “and its going to change a lot
more. My people aren’t going to be able to hunt and
fish much longer, and our houses are going to fall down. Soon people will start leaving for
the big cities, and our island may even die. Our whole way of life might be lost”.
Global warming occurs when greenhouse gases, such as water vapour and carbon
dioxide, accumulate in the atmosphere. These gases prevent heat from escaping into space
and, as a result, the planet warms up. If levels of greenhouse gases continue to rise at the
current rate, scientists predict that average global temperatures will rise by around 3'C by
the end of this century. Such temperatures will almost certainly melt polar ice caps, and the
resulting floods might affect major cities like New York and London.
“I don’t know if there is still time to stop global warming, but we have to struggle”, says
Chugiak. Lt’s everyone’s responsibility. We cant just leave it all to the politicians. So what
can we do? Start by taking the bus or riding a bike to work. Recycle more. Write to your
local politician. Every little bit helps.

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2. Match the words from the text with these definitions.
Vocabulary
1) distant a. happen
2) integral b. a person or animal lives in a particular place
3) diet c. because of
4) damage (n) d. not close or not near
5) wake up e. of the present time
6) due to f. important
7) fall down g. gas or extremely small drops of liquid
8) occur h. to have an influence on sb/sth
9) vapour i. food and drink usually eaten or drunk by a person
10) prevent or group, daily intake of food
11) current (adj) j. harm or injury
12) inhabitant k. job or duty to deal with
13) affect l. to become conscious, to start to react to a situation
14) struggle m. collapse
15) responsibility n. avoid, hinder
o. to fight, to use a lot of effort

3. Complete the sentences using the words in the box.

▪ affect ▪ current ▪ damage ▪ diet ▪ distant

▪ due to ▪ fall down ▪ inhabitant ▪ integral ▪ occur
▪ prevent ▪ responsibiity ▪ struggle ▪ vapour ▪ wake up

1. He's a/an _____________ part of the team and we can't do without him.
2. The law has done little to _____________ racial discrimination and inequality.
3. Smoking has caused irreversible _____________ to his lungs.
4. She heard the wind whistling through the trees and the howl of a _____________ wolf.
5. The company says it cannot cut its prices any more because it has a/an _____________ to its
shareholders.
6. If any of these symptoms _____________ while you are taking the medicine, consult your doctor
immediately.
7. A lot of her unhappiness is _____________ boredom and loneliness.
8. Poisonous _____________ burst out of the factory during the accident.
9. He _____________ to pedal his bicycle up the hill.
10. One of the their players _____________ every time someone tried to tackle him.
11. Companies need to _____________ and take notice of the public's increasing concern with the
environment.
12. What characteristics of cereals make them valuable in the _____________?
13. Researchers are looking at how a mother's health can _____________ the baby in the womb.
14. Many of the immigrants have intermarried with the island's original _____________.

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 Grammar
4. Complete the box with correct words.

NO VERB ADJECTIVE NOUN

1 distance distant distance
2 - inhabitant
3 die
4 occur -
5 accumulate
6 prevent
7 - responsibility
8 politician

EXERCISE 1 Noun (N) Pronoun (PRO)

For each underlined word in the following Verb (V) Preposition (PREP)
sentences, identify and then write the word Adjective (ADJ) Conjunction (CONJ)
classes on the line next to the number. Use
the following abbreviations: Adverb (ADV) Determiners (DET)
Interjection (INT)

1. _______ They attended the concert last weekend.

2. _______ Several cats ran into Rob’s garage.
3. _______ The truck driver delivered the packages quickly.
4. _______ Fast runners won all the awards at the track meet.
5. _______ My friends and I walked home after school.
6. _______ I wanted a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch yesterday.
7. _______ She was counting the ballots during a social study class.
8. _______ Hey! That is my seat.
9. _______ Will they finish the test on time?
10. _______ The diagram was pretty complicated for us.
11. _______ He will practice his musical piece soon.
12. _______ Reggie saw the awesome sight from the air.
13. _______ Her sister is the oldest member of the group.
14. _______ Check the score, Tom.
15. _______ Will the students be able to find the answer by themselves?
16. _______ Are you sure of yourself?
17. _______ They slowly carried the couch down the stairs.
18. _______ Can you see beyond those hills from the top of the tower?
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 The 9 Word Classes

‘Word class’ is the contemporary name for ‘part of speech’ into which words are
classified according to their functions in sentences. Every sentence you write or speak in
English includes words that fall into some of the nine classes. These include nouns, pronouns,
verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, articles/determiners, and interjections. In
fact, learning just the names of the word classes won't make you automatically a better writer or
speaker. However, you will gain a basic understanding of sentence structure and the English
language by familiarizing yourself with these labels.
Word classes are commonly divided into open classes: nouns, verbs, adjectives, and
adverbs and closed classes: pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, articles/determiners, and
interjections. The idea is that open classes can be altered and added to as language develops
and closed classes are pretty much set in stone. For example, new nouns are created every
day, but conjunctions never change.

Read each word classes brief explanation below!

Noun
Nouns are a person, place, thing, or idea. They can take on various roles in a sentence, from
the subject of it all to the object of an action. They are capitalized when they're the official name
of something or someone, called proper nouns in these cases. Examples: pirate, Caribbean,
ship, freedom, Captain Jack Sparrow.

Pronoun
Pronouns stand in for nouns in a sentence. They are more generic versions of nouns that refer
only to people. Examples: I, you, he, she, it, ours, them, who, which, anybody, ourselves.

Verb
Verbs are action words that tell what happens in a sentence. They can also show a sentence
subject's state of being (is, was). Verbs change form based on tense (present, past) and count
distinction (singular or plural). Examples: sing, dance, believes, seemed, finish, eat, drink, be,
became

Adjective
Adjectives describe nouns and pronouns. They specify which one, how much, what kind, and
more. Adjectives allow readers and listeners to use their senses to imagine something more
clearly. Examples: hot, lazy, funny, unique, bright, beautiful, poor, smooth.

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Adverb
Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, and even other adverbs. They specify when, where, how,
and why something happened and to what extent or how often. Examples: softly, lazily, often,
only, hopefully, softly, sometimes.

Preposition
Prepositions show spacial, temporal, and role relations between a noun or pronoun and the
other words in a sentence. They come at the start of a prepositional phrase, which contains a
preposition and its object. Examples: up, over, against, by, for, into, close to, out of, apart from.

Conjunction
Conjunctions join words, phrases, and clauses in a sentence. There are coordinating,
subordinating, and correlative conjunctions. Examples: and, but, or, so, yet, with.

Articles and Determiners

Articles and determiners function like adjectives by modifying nouns, but they are different than
adjectives in that they are necessary for a sentence to have proper syntax. Articles and
determiners specify and identify nouns, and there are indefinite and definite articles. Examples:
articles: a, an, the; determiners: these, that, those, enough, much, few, which, what.
Some traditional grammars have treated articles as a distinct word class. Modern grammars,
however, more often include articles in the category of determiners, which identify or quantify a
noun. Even though they modify nouns like adjectives, articles are different in that they are
essential to the proper syntax of a sentence, just as determiners are necessary to convey the
meaning of a sentence, while adjectives are optional.

Interjection
Interjections are expressions that can stand on their own or be contained within sentences.
These words and phrases often carry strong emotions and convey reactions. Examples: ah,
whoops, ouch, hooray!

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1.1
Nouns
A noun is the name of a person, place, thing, or idea:
People farmer, mechanic, father, Professor Haskins, editors, Marcia
Places ocean, Canada, porch, Spain, classroom
Things scissors, giraffe, pen, smiles, tugboat, skateboard, braces, drill
Ideas love, inspiration, courage, anxiety, eagerness, happiness

All nouns are either common or proper nouns:

A common noun names any person, place, or thing. Examples are basketball,
video, wizard, coin, woman, and coach.
A proper noun names a particular person, place, or thing and begins with a capital
letter. Examples are Gembira Loka Zoo, Petronas Tower, Mr. Ronaldo, and
Jakarta.

Common Nouns Proper Nouns

hospital Sardjito Hospital
woman Katy Perry
school Pantekosta Middle School
newspaper The New York Times

Know the difference between a common and a proper noun:

Here are some specific types of nouns:

A collective noun names a group of people or things. Examples of collective nouns

are flock, family, fleet, club, class, and group.
A compound noun is a noun consisting of more than a single word. It could be separate
words such as social studies, physical education, and dining room. It could be two
words joined by a hyphen such as merry-go-round, thirty-three, sister-in-law, and
great-grandmother. It could be a combined word such as schoolteacher, bookkeeper,
landlord, and headmaster.

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 Pronouns
1.2
A pronoun is a word used in place of one noun or more. We use pronouns to refer
to a noun. In the sentence, “Roberto feels that he can win the race,” he is the
pronoun, and Roberto is the noun that is referred.

In the sentence, “Terry and Jim know that they are best friends,” they is the
pronoun, and Terry and Jim are the nouns that are referred.

There are several types of pronouns.

1. Personal pronouns that refer to people and things.

The following list shows these three categories of personal pronouns:

Singular Plural
First person I, my, mine, me we, our, ours, us
(the person speaking)

Second person you, your, yours you, your, yours

(the person spoken to)

Third person he, his, him, she, they, their, theirs, them
(some other her, hers, it, its
person or thing)

2. A reflexive pronoun is formed by adding -self or -selves to certain personal pronouns.

Examples of reflexive pronouns are myself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, themselves,
yourself, and yourselves. The sentence, “I found it myself,” contains the personal
pronoun I and the reflexive pronoun myself.

3. An interrogative pronoun is used to ask a question. These pronouns are which, who,
whom, and whose.

4. An indefinite pronoun often does not refer to a specific or definite person or thing. In the
sentence, “Everybody will select another to help with everything,” the three italicized words
are all indefinite pronouns since they take the place of a noun and do not refer to a
specific or definite person or thing.

These are all indefinite pronouns:

all each more one

another either most other
any everybody much several

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 anybody everyone neither some
anyone everything nobody somebody
anything few none someone
both many no one

EXERCISE 2 Two at a Time (Pronouns)

Underline the noun found in each sentence. Below each pronoun label its type using these
abbreviations: personal (PER), reflexive (REF), interrogative (INT), or indefinite (IND) pronoun.

1. This is the way to do it.

2. He hurt himself during gym class.

3. Can you and they finish the cleaning by three o’clock?

4. Who is the person with her?

5. I held the door for them.

6. Please tell him that we said hello.

7. Ours is older than theirs.

8. Neither of them is the clear winner of the race as of now.

9. Will she watch someone while Sarah goes shopping?

10. Those are the best ones to buy.

11. Please bring yours to us.

12. After Jerry spotted the giraffe, he photographed it.

13. Everything has gone well for us.

14. Will they be able to move the belongings by themselves?

15. All of the students know both.

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1.3
Adjectives
An adjective modifies or qualifies the meaning of a noun or a pronoun. It answers the
questions, What kind? Which one(s)? How many? How much?
Carrie read an interesting story. (What kind of story?)
The recent article has that information. (Which article?)
Wendy paid fifty dollars for the jacket. (How many dollars?)
Much space was devoted to her artwork. (How much space?)

There are several types of adjectives:

A proper adjective is formed from a proper noun.
Italian bread Herculean strength Indonesian taste

A compound adjective is a word composed of two or more words. Sometimes these

words are hyphenated.
black-and-blue car hometown hero
newly painted house recently purchased laptop

1.4 Verbs
There are several types of verbs to be studied: the action verb, the linking verb, and
helping verb.

1. Action Verbs
An action verb tells what action, often a physical action, a subject performs.
My father delivers packages to department stores each day.
Suzanne skated across the rink in Central Park.
Oscar will help Petra with the project.

2. Linking Verbs
A linking verb connects or links a subject to a noun or an adjective in the
predicate. The most common linking verbs are the forms of the verb “to be” (is,
are, was, were, been, being, am) and appear, become, feel, grow, look, remain,
seem, smell, sound, stay, taste, and turn.

My sister is a doctor. ➔The linking verb, is, connects the subject, sister, with
the doctor.
My sister is studying to become a doctor. ➔ In this sentence the word is is a
helping verb for the main
verb, studying. Is does not
function as a linking verb.
He appeared tired. ➔ The linking verb, appeared, links the subject, He, with the
predicate adjective, tired.
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 He appeared at the game. ➔In this sentence the verb, appeared, is an action
verb, not a linking verb.

Discuss the following sentences. Choose the correct type of verb!

1. Reggie looked panic. (action / linking verb)

2. Reggie looked for his missing wallet. (action / linking verb)
3. Tammy grew tomatoes in her garden this year. (action / linking verb)
4. Tammy grew tired during the long concert. (action / linking verb)
5. I feel confused in math class. (action / linking verb)
6. I feel the penny at the bottom of this pool. (action / linking verb)

3. Helping Verbs

A helping verb assists the main verb in a sentence. There can be more than one
helping verb in each sentence.

The common helping verbs are am, is, are, was, were, be, been, being,
has, had, have, do, does, did, may, might, must, can, could, shall, should, will,
and would.
The italicized word in each sentence below is the helping verb. The underlined
word is the main verb.

a. The members are going to the city tomorrow evening.

b. That joke has been heard around the office.
c. Are her brothers leaving for the train?

1.5 Adverbs
An adverb is a word that modifies (qualifies or limits) a verb, an adjective, or another
adverb.

◗ Many adverbs end in -ly.

◗ Adverbs answer any of these four questions: Where? When? How? To what
extent?

◗ Here are some adverbs that do not end in -ly:

again almost alone already also

always away even ever here
just later never not now

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 nowhere often perhaps quite rather
seldom so sometimes somewhat somewhere
soon then there today too
very yesterday yet

Examples adverbs modify verbs:

a. John ate quickly. (How did he eat?)
b. I walk there. (Where did I walk?)
c. Ashleigh will eat soon. (When will Ashleigh eat?)

Examples Adverbs modify adjectives:

d. Rex is very happy. (Very modifies the adjective happy and answers the
question, To what extent?)
e. The program was too unrealistic. (Too modifies the adjective unrealistic and
answers the question, To what extent?)

Examples Adverbs modify other adverbs:

f. Warren walks too quickly. (Too modifies the adverb quickly and answers the
question, How quickly?)
g. He moved rather recently. (Rather modifies the adverb recently and answers
the question, How recently?)

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ADJECTIVE AND ADVERB

When is a word an adjective, and when is it an adjective?
Adjectives → describe nouns and pronouns. Adverbs do not.
Adverbs → describe verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. Adjectives do not.
a) Helen has a yearly membership at the local health club.
➔ Yearly is an adjective since it modifies the noun membership and tells which
membership.
b) Helen contributes yearly.
➔ Yearly is an adverb since it modifies the verb contributes and answers the
question, When does Helen contribute?
c) Mike arrived late.
➔ Late is an adverb since it tells when Mike arrived.
d) The late delivery cut down on sales in the supermarket.
➔ Late is an adjective because it tells which delivery.

EXERCISE 3 Scrambled Up for You! (Adverbs)

In each sentence, the letters of the underlined adverb are scrambled. Unscramble the letters,
and write the word on the line provided before the sentence.

1. __________________ He walks tsaf.

2. __________________ Do you want to stop ehre?

3. __________________ He visits his grandmother ywlkee.

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 4. __________________ Do you feel lewl enough to go on the trip?

5. __________________ Have you erve been to Mexico City?

6. __________________ I wasaly run errands for her.

7. __________________ Have I met you foebre?

8. __________________ I would raerht drive to your house tonight.

9. __________________ Are you ilslt going to go to summer school?

10. __________________ I am tno trying to insult you, Nick.

11. __________________ Will you bat frsit tonight?

12. __________________ Are you ftneo at this location, Mitch?

13. __________________ Let’s start the performance onw.

14. __________________ May I aosl assist you, Helene?

15. __________________ Thank you nlidyk.

1.6 Prepositions
A preposition is a word that shows the relationship, usually location and direction
between a noun or a pronoun and another word in the sentence.
Examples:
a) The man swam under the bridge. ➔ Under connects the idea of swam and bridge.
b) She walked down the aisle. ➔Down connects walked and aisle.
c) Julie walked around the campus and toward town.
➔ Around connects walked and campus. Toward connects walked and town.
Here are the most commonly used prepositions:

aboard about above across

after against along among
around as at before
behind below beneath beside
besides between beyond but
by concerning despite down
during except for from
in inside into like
near of off on
onto opposite out outside

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 over past since through
throughout till to toward
under underneath until up
upon with within without But is a
preposition
only when it can be replaced by the word except. So in the sentence, “All but Teddy
went inside,” but is a preposition since it connects All and Teddy and can be replaced
by the word except.

Another type of preposition is the compound preposition. It does the same as a

common preposition but is composed of two or more words. Here are the most
common compound prepositions:

according to ahead of apart from as of

aside from because of by means of in addition to
in back of in front of in place of in spite of
instead of in view of next to on account of
out of prior to

Adverb or preposition?
The difference between a preposition and an adverb is:
Adverbs ➔ answer the questions, Where? When? How? To what extent? by
itself.
Prepositions ➔ need more than just themselves to answer the same questions.

He fell down. → Down is an adverb because it takes only one word to tell where he
fell.
He fell down the stairs. → Down is a preposition because it takes more than a
single word to tell where he fell.
Trey walked aboard. → Aboard is an adverb because it takes only one word needed to
tell where Trey walked.
Trey walked aboard the ship. → Aboard is a preposition because it takes more than one
word to tell where Trey walked.

EXERCISE 4 Finding the Four Words (Prepositions)

Underline the preposition in each of the following sentences.

1. The teammates walked beyond the bleachers.

2. The track team ran into the hills.

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 3. The temperature is several degrees below zero.

4. Call me around four o’clock.

5. It is a matter concerning bad behavior.

6. The parents joined in the conversation.

7. Ronnie fell asleep during the professor’s lecture.

8. We found the sleeping cat underneath the blanket.

9. The couple walked near the bridge.

10. The children slid down the slide yesterday.

11. We lost contact over time.

12. This letter is addressed to your sister.

1.7 Article and Determiner

An article and a determiner is a word that introduces a noun, such as a/an, the,
every, this, those, or many (as in a dog, the dog, this dog, those dogs, every dog,
many dogs).

The determiner the is sometimes known as the definite article and the determiner a
(or an) as the indefinite article.

1.8 Conjunctions
A conjunction connects words or group of words. There are three types of
conjunctions: coordinating conjunctions, correlative conjunctions, and
subordinating conjunctions. The first two types of conjunctions are discussed
below, and the third type is discussed later on the unit ahead.

1. A coordinating conjunction is a single connecting word. These seven words are

for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so.

Examples:

a) The boys and girls worked at the fair.

b) Paula or Jeannine can go with you tonight.
c) I would like to help you, but I will be busy tonight.
d) We must leave early so we can get to the wedding reception on time.

Remember the made-up word FANBOYS when you memorize the coordinating
conjunctions. Each letter in this word (For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So) stands for a
coordinating conjunction.

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 2. Correlative conjunctions are pairs of connecting words. These five pairs of
words are both/and, either/or, neither/nor, not only/but also, and whether/or.

a) Both Henry and Henrietta are leaving the dance now.

b) They will not only leave now, but they will also not be here to help clean up.

c) Either go with them or stay here and help.

d) He went neither to the stadium nor to the concert hall during this vacation.

EXERCISE 5 Circle the conjunction or pair of conjunctions in each sentence:

1. Lyle chose both steak and salad for his dinner.

2. I chose neither steak nor salad for my dinner.
3. Either you or he can drive Dad to the train station tomorrow morning.
4. The panda wanted to eat, for he was hungry.
5. Peanut butter and jelly is Rex’s favorite sandwich.
6. Not only the girls but also the boys will be invited to the assembly.
7. Sara did not know whether to swing at the ball or take the pitch.
8. Mark would like to go, but he cannot.
9. Rich likes the food at this restaurant, yet he seldom eats here.
10. Run with him or her.

Use these coordinating and correlative conjunctions in your own sentences:

11. Use neither . . . nor:

12. Use but:

13. Use for:

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 14. Use or:

15. Use either . . . or:

1.9 Interjections
An interjection is a word that expresses strong feeling or emotion:
◗ An interjection usually comes at the beginning of the sentence.

◗ An interjection is often followed by an exclamation point (!) when the emotion is strong
or a comma (,) when the emotion is mild.
◗ Do not overuse interjections. Include one when you want to make your point. If you use
too many interjections, your writing loses its power and effectiveness.
◗ Here are some common interjections:

Aw Bravo Darn Dear me

Eek Eh Gee Golly
Goodness gracious Gosh Hallelujah Hey
Horrors Hurrah Hurray Mmm
Oh Oh no Oops Ouch
Phew Rats Really Ugh
Well Whoa Whoops Wow
Yea Yeh Yes Yippee

EXERCISE 6 With Great Feeling!!! (Interjections)

Write an appropriate interjection for each of the following sentences in the space provided.
There may be more than one answer for each space.

1. __________________ ! I smashed my finger with the hammer.

2. __________________ , all right, Nick.

3. __________________ ! We have finally beaten that team!

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 4. __________________ , take it easy, Reggie!

5. __________________ , I think we better look over this paper immediately.

6. __________________ , I forgot to take out the garbage this morning.

7. __________________ ! The tickets for his concert are incredibly expensive!

8. __________________ ! You did so well in tonight’s school play!

9. __________________ ! You have no right to say that to him!

10. __________________ , now I see what you are trying to say.

11. __________________ . I am not very keen on that idea.

12. __________________ , what did Mike say about his tryout?

13. __________________ ! Does your hand still hurt from the accident?

14. __________________ ! Get away from my new car, kid!

15. __________________ , this food is absolutely delicious!

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Practice Test
PARTS OF SPEECH
Decide whether each underlined word is a noun (N), pronoun (P), verb (V), adjective (ADJ),
adverb (ADV), article/determiner (Det), conjunction (C), preposition (Pre), or interjection (I).
Write its abbreviation on the line before the sentence.

1. ________________ Slow down.

2. ________________ I would like to go, but I have to help my sister.

3. ________________ Can you please drive more slowly?

4. ________________ He is our legislator.

5. ________________ The captain looked for a better route.

6. ________________ Wow! Are we there already?

7. ________________ The pictures fell from the table.

8. ________________ I can certainly use your help during the ordeal.

9. ________________ This extravagant home is overpriced even for today’s market.

10. ________________ Mom and Dad just returned from Charlotte, North Carolina.

11. ________________ Diplomacy is the best tactic.

12. ________________ They think that their dog will like it.

13. ________________ Some of these stories are discussed often.

14. ________________ Either the giraffe or the monkey will be fed now.

15. ________________ We will probably hinder the process if we try to help them.

16. ________________ Helene cautiously approached the dog.

17. ________________ Can you help with the moving?

18. ________________ They will do most of the moving themselves.

19. ________________ I am not hungry.

20. ________________ This is a very pretty necklace.

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VOCABULARY BUILDING

PREFIX AND SUFFIX

Adding affixes to existing words (the base or root) to form new words is common in
academic English. Prefixes are added to the front of the base (like dislike), whereas suffixes
are added to the end of the base (active activate). Prefixes usually do not change the class
of the base word, but suffixes usually do change the class of the word.

The most common prefixes used to form new verbs in academic English are: re-, dis-,
over-, un-, mis-, out-. The most common suffixes are: -ise, -en, -ate, -(i)fy. By far the most
common affix in academic English is -ise.

VERBS
Prefix + verb verb

Prefix Meaning Examples

re- again or back restructure, revisit, reappear, rebuild, refinance

dis- reverses the meaning of the verb disappear, disallow, disarm, disconnect, discontinue

over- too much overbook, oversleep, overwork

un- reverses the meaning of the verb unbend, uncouple, unfasten

mis- badly or wrongly mislead, misinform, misidentify

out- more or better than others outperform, outbid

be- make or cause befriend, belittle

co- together co-exist, co-operate, co-own

de- do the opposite of devalue, deselect

fore- earlier, before foreclose, foresee

inter- between interact, intermix, interface

pre- before pre-expose, prejudge, pretest

sub- under/below subcontract, subdivide

trans- across, over transform, transcribe, transplant

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 under- not enough underfund, undersell, undervalue, underdevelop

Suffix used to form verbs with the meaning "cause to be".

Suffix Example

-ise stabilise, characterise, symbolise, visualise, specialise

-ate differentiate, liquidate, pollinate, duplicate, fabricate

-fy classify, exemplify, simplify, justify

-en awaken, fasten, shorten, moisten

NOUNS
The most common prefixes used to form new nouns in academic English are: co- and sub-. The
most common suffixes are: -tion, -ity, -er, -ness, -ism, -ment, -ant, -ship, -age, -ery. By far the
most common noun affix in academic English is -tion.

Prefix + noun noun

Prefix Meaning Examples

anti- against anticlimax, antidote, antithesis

auto- self autobiography, automobile

bi- two bilingualism, biculturalism, bi-metalism

co- joint co-founder, co-owner, co-descendant

counter- against counter-argument, counter-example, counter-proposal

dis- the converse of discomfort, dislike

ex- former ex-chairman, ex-hunter

hyper- extreme hyperinflation, hypersurface

in- the converse of inattention, incoherence, incompatibility

in- inside inpatient,

inter- between interaction, inter-change, interference

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 kilo- thousand kilobyte

mal- bad malfunction, maltreatment, malnutrition

mega- million megabyte

mis- wrong misconduct, misdeed, mismanagement

mini- small mini-publication, mini-theory

mono- one monosyllable, monograph, monogamy

neo- new neo-colonialism, neo-impressionism

out- separate outbuilding,

poly- many polysyllable

pseudo- false pseudo-expert

re- again re-organisation, re-assessment, re-examination

semi- half semicircle, semi-darkness

sub- below subset, subdivision

super- more than, above superset, superimposition, superpowers

sur- over and above surtax

tele- distant telecommunications,

tri- three tripartism

ultra- beyond ultrasound

under- below, too little underpayment, under-development, undergraduate

vice- deputy vice-president

Suffix added to a verb (V), noun (N) or adjective (A) noun

Suffix Meaning Examples

-tion alteration, demonstration

action/instance of V-ing
-sion expansion, inclusion, admission

-er person who V-s advertiser, driver

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 something used for V-ing computer, silencer

-ment action/instance of V-ing development, punishment, unemployment

-ant assistant, consultant

person who V-s
-ent student

-age action/result of V breakage, wastage, package

-al action/result of V denial, proposal, refusal, dismissal

-ence action/result of V preference, dependence, interference

-ance attendance, acceptance, endurance
action/instance of V-ing bribery, robbery, misery
-ery/-ry
place of V-ing refinery, bakery

Suffix Meaning Examples

-er person concerned with N astronomer, geographer

-ism doctrine of N Marxism, Maoism, Thatcherism

-ship state of being N friendship, citizenship, leadership

-age collection of N baggage, plumage

Suffix Meaning Examples

-ity state or quality of being A ability, similarity, responsibility, curiosity

-ness state or quality of being A darkness, preparedness, consciousness

-cy state or quality of being A urgency, efficiency, frequency

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Adjectives
Many adjectives are formed from a base of a different class with a suffix (e.g. -less, -ous).
Adjectives can also be formed from other adjectives, especially by the negative prefixes (un-, in-
and non-).

The most common suffixes are -al, -ent, -ive, -ous, -ful, -less.

Suffix added to verbs or nouns adjective

Suffix Example

-al central, political, national, optional, professional

-ent different, dependent, excellent

-ive attractive, effective, imaginative, repetitive

-ous continuous, dangerous, famous

-ful beautiful, peaceful, careful

-less endless, homeless, careless, thoughtless

-able drinkable, countable, avoidable,

Negative + adjective adjective

Prefix Examples

un- unfortunate, uncomfortable, unjust

im-/in-/ir-/il- immature, impatient, improbable, inconvenient, irreplaceable, illegal

non- non-fiction, non-political, non-neutral

dis- disloyal, dissimilar, dishonest

Mixed
Base word + both prefix and suffix

Adjectives: uncomfortable, unavoidable, unimaginative, inactive, semi-circular

Nouns: disappointment, misinformation, reformulation

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