What is a prefix?

A prefix is a le er or group of le ers added to the beginning of a word, changing its overall meaning and crea ng a new
word. Prefixes cannot stand alone; they must be a ached to a complete word.

prefix is a type of morpheme. With a few excep ons, do not hyphenate a er a prefix unless it precedes a proper noun
(e.g., pre-Columbian, trans-Atlan c).

Prefix and suffix

- A suffix, unlike a prefix, a aches to the end of a word.

Adding a suffix to a verb, noun, or adjec ve can change the word's part of speech from adjec ve/verb to noun or from
verb/noun to adjec ve.
Some words that seem like prefixes and suffixes, such as auto- and -wide, are combining forms. These English words are
o en deriva ves from La n or Greek words and can be words on their own or combined to make new words.

Prefix examples
The following chart contains a list of the most common prefixes in the English language:

Prefix examples

The following chart contains a list of the most common prefixes in the English language:

Prefix examples

Prefix Meaning Examples

anti- opposite; counteracting anticipate; antifreeze Anti-: The store ran out of antibacterial soap

de- make opposite of; decrease; deactivate De-: Tim forgot the company deducts taxes from his pay.
remove, reduce

dis- not; opposite of; remove dissimilar; disappear Dis-: Once the cruise ship docked, the passengers
disembarked.
Prefix examples

Prefix Meaning Examples

en-, put; go into; to cause to enable; empower En-: Matadors use the color red to enrage the bulls.
em- be
Em-: The candidate felt empowered after receiving the
president's endorsement.

fore- before; in front of forecast; foreshadow Fore-: The backdrop on the stage shows flowers in the
foreground with trees in the background.

in-, im- into; inside; within inject; implant In-: Unfortunately, he voted too late, so it was invalid.

Im-: The player's injury impaired his ability to play well.

in-, im- not insincere; impatient; Ir-: After the accident, the car's damage was irreparable.
, ir-, il- irregular; illegal
Il: The doctor's handwriting was illegible.

inter- between; among interstate; intersect Inter-: The interoffice mail should be arriving any
minute.

mid- middle midfield; midair Mid-: Larger families need cars that are bigger than
midsize sedans.

mis- bad; wrong; failure; lack misinformation; Mis-: John thought his email was misinterpreted as a
misquote demand rather than a request.

non- not nonexistent; Non-: The teacher found the student's reason for being
nonpoisonous late nonsensical.

over- above; too much overachieve; overpass Over-: Tracy paid her rent on time, so it wasn't overdue.

pre- before; in front of prevent; predict Pre-: The preface of the book explains the author's
motivation.

re- again redo; rejoin Re-: Steve didn't hear the message, so his dad had to
repeat himself.
 Prefix examples

Prefix Meaning Examples

semi- half; partial; happening semiannual; semicircle Semi-: The semiprofessional player finally called up to
twice the majors.

sub- below; under; secondary; submarine; subpar Sub-: Take the subway when you visit New York City; it is
less than complete cheaper than a taxi.

super- above; over superimpose; superstar Super-: Trent's supervisor complimented him on a job
well done.

trans- across; beyond; change; transformation; Trans-: What kind of transportation do you prefer? Car
through transportation or plane?

un- not; opposite of unnecessary; unable Un-: The point of the assignment was unclear.

under- beneath; below; less in underground; Under-: The realtor underestimated the value of the
degree underachieve house.

Another type of prefix may come before a person’s name, like Mr., Miss, Mrs., or Dr.