Derivatives are formed from noun roots, adjective roots and verb roots.

In this unit we will deal with

adjectives, adverbs and nouns which derive from certain noun roots.

Noun Root Adjective = Noun + -ful Adjective = Noun + -less

Describing a qua lity or Having enough of th a t qu ality or Not having th a t q ua lity or
characteristic (often abstract nouns) ch aracte ristic characteristic
care careful careless
Adverbs Noun + -fully t Adverb = Noun + -lessly
carefully carelessly

• Some o ther com m on nouns th a t fo rm adjectives and adverbs in the same way are: colour, harm,
hope, meaning, pain, po w er and use.
• The noun doubt form s the adjective in -ful and th e adverb in -fully and in -less.
do u bt 4 d o u b tfu l 4 d o u b tfu lly - doubtless
• In some cases o nly one o f the tw o adjectives - and corresponding adverbs ■derives from the noun root,
not both.
beauty b ea u tifu l - begs&tess / b e a u tifu lly - b e ^ f ig $ s ly end - endless / e nitM Ty - endlessly
In the same way: de lightfu l, dutifu l, grateful, aimless, effortless, heartless, homeless, nameless, pointless
and shapeless.
• The opposite of some adjectives in -ful is un + noun root + ful, not noun root + less.
success 4 successful * unsuccessful s kill 4 s k ilfu l t u n sk ilful tru th 4 tru th fu l * u n tru th fu l
• Sometimes both adjective form s (noun root + less and un + noun root + ful) derive from the same noun.
In such cases the tw o adjectives have diffe ren t meanings. The adjective fo rm un + noun root + ful is the
opposite of the a djective in -ful.
h e lp - } h e lp fu l (= sb who gives h elp) * un h elpfu l (= sb who doesn't give help)
helpless (= sb who needs help)
• The opposite of some adjectives in -less is noun root + -y or noun root +-b le , not noun root + -ful.
g u ilt g uiltless g u ilty sleep -4 sleepless * sleepy
sense 4 senseless * sensible value -4 valueless * valuable (note the changes in spelling)
• Be careful w ith the m eaning of the adjectives derived fro m price.
price -4 p rice y (=expensive)
4 priceless (= to o valuable to have a pric e)

Noun Root Noun = Noun + -ship

1 Som ebody in a certain position / occupatio n 1 State of being in certain position / occupation

author authors hip

2 Somebody having a relation ship w ith sb else 2 Relationship between tw o people
frien d frien dsh ip

• Some c om m on nouns th a t fo rm nouns in the same way as au th or are: citizen, leader, m em ber and owner.
• Some com m on nouns th a t fo rm nouns in the same way as frien d are: com panion, p a rtn e r and relation.
• Some nouns form nouns in - ship w ith a d iffe ren t meaning: champion, s cholar and sponsor.

[ J I J J 3 When you are asked to com ple te a sentence w ith a suitable w o rd d eriving from a given roo t, read
the sentence c are fu lly to decide: 1) w hat part of speech the m issing w ord is (noun, verb, adjective or
adverb), 2) if the m issing word has the same m eaning as the given ro o t (e.g. success-successful) o r th e
opposite m eaning (e.g. success-unsuccessful).
 unit 0 3

jTB

In this unit we will deal with more nouns, adjectives and adverbs deriving from nouns.

Noun Root Noun = Noun + - hood

Referring to a person These nouns describe the state or period of being w hat
the noun root refers to.
adult ad ulthood
boy boyhood

• Some o the r co m m on nouns th a t form nouns in the same way are: child, man, m other, p aren t and woman.
• Pay attention to the fo llow in g: ne ig hbo ur neig h bou rh o o d

• Some other com m on nouns th a t fo rm adjectives and adverbs in the same way are: accident, addition, e motion,
fate, in tention, nation, nature, person, profession and tradition.
• Note the changes in spelling:
comm erce com m ercial 4 com m ercia lly finance 4 financial 4 finan cially
p a rt 4 p a rtia l 4 p a rtia lly confidence 4 c o n fid en tia l 4 c o n fid e n tia lly
a rtific e 4 a rtific ia l 4 a rtific ia lly essence 4 essential 4 essentially
ben efit 4 be neficial 4 ben eficially

Noun Root Adjective = Noun + - y Adverb = Noun + - ily

luck lucky luckily

• Some o th er com m on nouns th a t fo rm adjectives and ad verb s in the same way are: ease, fun, health, noise
and s/eep.
• Pay atte ntio n to the fo llow in g nouns th a t fo rm o nly adjectives: cloud, d irt, hair, rain, risk, snow, sun, wealth
and worth.
• Note the changes in spelling: anger a ng ry an g rily hun ge r h un g ry h u n g rily

Noun Root Adjective = Noun + - ous

Referring to a q uality or characteristic Having the qua lity or characteristic of the noun root
danger dangerous

• Some o th er co m m on nouns th a t form nouns in the same way are: adventure, fame, hum our, nerve and
poison.
• Some nouns ending in -ion form adjectives in -ious:
am bitio n 4 am b itio us cau tion 4 cautious in fe ctio n 4 infe ctio us
religio n 4 relig iou s suspicion -> suspicious
• Some nouns ending in -e form a djectives in -eous: advantage advantageous courage courageous
• Note the follow in g irregularities: anxiety anxious num b e r num erous pric e + precio us

Noun Root Adjective/adverb = Noun + -ly

day d aily

• Some other com m on nouns th a t form (both) adjectives and adverbs are: m onth, mother, w o rld and year,
m o nth 4 m onthly : His m o n th ly salary is fa r above the average, (adjective)
He gets p a id m onthly, (adverb)
 unit

Si

This unit deals with more words deriving from nouns.

Noun Root Verb = Noun + -ise

ch aracter ch aracterise

• Some othe r com m on nouns th a t form verbs in the same way are: apology, com puter, economy, hospital,
memory, summary, sym bol, sym pa thy and victim.
• Pay atte ntio n to the fo llow ing irregula ritie s: criticis m -4 criticis e em phasis -4 emphasise
• Verbs derivin g from nouns in -ice are form ed by changing the -c into -s:
advice 4 advise device 4 devise p ra ctice -4 practise

Noun Root Adjective = Noun in -ic Adverb = Noun + - ically

hero heroic he roica lly 1

• Some other com m on nouns th a t form adjectives and adverbs in the same way are: dem ocrat, diplom at,
enthusiast, hyg iene and optim ist.
• Nouns in -y usually fo rm adjectives in -etic:
ap olo gy 4 a polo g etic ene rg y energetic s ym pathy 4 sym pathe tic
• Some nouns fo rm tw o adjectives, one in -ic and the o the r in -ical w ith no diffe rence in meaning:
iro n y -4 iro n ic/iro n ic a l sym bo l 4 sym bolic/s ym bo lica l

Noun Root Noun (person) = Adjective =

(usually subject of study) Noun in-ist or-ian Noun in-ical or-ic
A rt artist artis tic
Biology biologist biological
Chem istry ch em ist chem ical
Drama dram a tist dram atic
Gramm ar gram m arian gram m atical
Logic logician logical
M athem atics m athem atician m athem atical
M edicine medical
Music musician musical
Politics politicia n politic al
Psychology psychologist psychological
Science sc ientist scien tific

• The adverbs form ed from these adjectives have the ending -ically:
lo gic a l 4 lo gica lly sc ie ntific 4 s cien tific a lly
• Some nouns form tw o adjectives, one in -ic and th e oth e r in -ical, but th e ir meaning is differen t:
econom ics 4 econom ic (= related to econom y o r the fie ld o f the econom ics)
4 econom ical (= inexpensive, saving m on ey)
h is to ry 4 h isto ric (= im p o rta n t in h isto ry)
4 h isto rica l (= b elo ngin g to history; related to sth that hap pened in the past)
• Very few nouns (eg. physics) form nouns (person) both in -ist and in -ian, but th e ir m eaning is d ifferen t.
physics -4 ph ysicist (= a p ers on who has stud ie d or is s tu dyin g physics)
4 ph ysician (=a d o c to r)

——
Noun Root Noun = Noun + -dom
bore boredom
king kingdom
star stardom

• Some nouns in -dom are derived from adjectives, not fro m nouns. The m ost com m on ones are:
free free dom wise -4 w isdom

■
 unit 0 6

^25S3SB3S3li _______________________________________________

The opposites of many English words are formed by adding a negative prefix to the words. The most common
negative prefixes are un-, in-, dis- and mis-.

• Most words that derive from the same root take the same negative prefix as the root word:
approve 4 disapprove approval 4 disapproval
approving ^ disapproving approvingly 4 disapprovingly
• Sometimes verbs, nouns, adjectives or adverbs deriving from the same root form their opposites with the
addition of different negative prefixes:
com fort discom fort (noun) comfortable uncom fortable (adjective)
fortune misfortune (noun) fortunate unfortunate (adjective)
equal unequal (adjective) equality -■>inequality (noun)
• Some words of the same category (verbs, nouns or adjectives) deriving from one root form tw o opposites -
using two different negative prefixes - but with a difference in meaning:
a£>/e (adj) unable (=not able), disabled (=handicapped)
inform ed (adj) uninform ed (=not informed), misinform ed (=wrongly informed)
used (adj) unused (=not used), misused (=wrongly/badly used)

attractive unattractive
attractively unattractively

certain -*• uncertain certainty-^ uncertainty

252 able + unable
ability inability, disability

lock unlock dress undress

efficient inefficient efficiently inefficiently efficiency inefficiency

! 1 11

• The prefix in- changes to: /'/- before /-.-legal illegal

im- before m- and p-: mature 4 immature
patient 4 im patient
ir- before r-: rational ^ irrational
• The prefix in- is not used to form opposites of verbs.
• The prefix in- is not used to form opposites of words beginning with in-:
interesting 4 uninteresting
interpret 4 misinterpret
integrate 4 disintegrate

agree + disagree connect disconnect

agreement disagreement agreeable disagreeable agreeably disagreeably

honesty dishonesty honest dishonest honestly dishonestly

| judge misjudge judgement ^ misjudgement

 unit 0 7

{^223331.
This unit deals with some verbs and nouns which derive from adjectives.

Adjective Root Verb = Adjective + -en Noun ^Adjective + -ness

I Describing a quality/s tate Describing the process of acquiring The q ua lity / state described by the
the qua lity / state o f the adjective adjective
dark darken darkness

Some oth e r com m on adjectives th at form verbs and nouns in the same way are: fresh, hard, loose, quick,
sharp, thick and weak.
The adjectives broad, deep and wide fo rm nouns in -th:
broad broaden breadth
deep 4 deepen 4 depth
wide 4 widen 4 width
Some verbs in -en do not derive from adjectives, but from the corresponding nouns:

Adjective Noun Verb

high height heighten
long length lengthen
strong strength strengthen
— frig h t frigh te n
— thre at threaten

The adjective sho rt fo rm s tw o nouns w ith a difference in meaning:

short shortness (being s h ort or having little of sth)
shortage (lack or insu fficie n t q u a n tity of sth)

Adjective Root in -nt Noun in-nee or -ncy

Describing a q uality / state The q uality/state described by the adjective
distan t distance
intellig ent intelligence
effic ie nt effic ienc y

Most adjectives in -ant/-ent form nouns in -ance and-ence.

Some com m on a djectives th at fo rm nouns in -ance are: arrogant, assistant, ignorant, im portant, relevant,
reluctant, resistant, significant and tolerant.
Some com m on adjectives th a t form nouns in -ence are: absent, confident, convenient, different, evident,
innocent, patient, present, silent and violent.
Some com m on adjectives in -ant/-ent th at form nouns in -ancy/-ency are: consistent, efficient, fluent, frequent,
pregnant, proficient, redundant, transparent, urgent and vacant.

Adjective Root in -te Noun in -cy

Describing a qua lity / state The quality/state described by the adjective
private privacy

Some o the r co mm on adjectives th a t form nouns in th e same way are: (in)accurate, (in)adequate, (il)literate,
immediate, intim ate and obstinate.
The adjective secret form s tw o nouns w ith a difference in meaning:
secret secret (fact known only to few people and not to ld to others)
secrecy (having/kee ping secrets)
The adjective fortun a te does n ot fo rm a noun in -cy bu t derives from the noun fortune.
 unit 0 |

This unit deals w ith verbs and nouns w hich derive from adjectives.

Adjective Root Verb = Adjective + -ise

Describing a state or c onditio n Acq uiring the state or co n dition described by the
adjective
general generalise

• Some o the r co m m on adjectives th a t fo rm verbs in the same way are: familiar, fertile, legal, mobile, modern,
neutral, special, stable and sterile.
• Pay attentio n to the follow in g irre gula rity:
stable 4 stabilise

Adjective Root in -able/-ible Noun in -ability/-ibility

(in)capable (in )capa bility

(im )possible (im )po ssib ility

• Some o the r co mm on adjectives th a t fo rm nouns in -ability are: available, stable and suitable.
• Some o ther co mm on adjectives th a t fo rm nouns in -ib ility are: flexible, responsible, sensible and visible.
• The nouns a bility and sta bility form opposites w ith the addition o f the pre fix -in, no t -un.
unable 4 in ability
unstable 4 instability

Adjective Root Noun + -ity

-ous generous generosity

-e secure security
-al original orig in a lity
-ive creative c re a tivity
-or m ajor m ajo rity
-ar sim ilar sim ilarity
-an hum an hum an ity
-IC authentic au th en tic ity
-d hum id h u m id ity

• Some nouns w hich derive from adjectives do not fo llo w the rules presented above. Some o f these are:
ambiguous 4 am biguity ferocious 4 ferocity
anonymous 4 anonym ity simple 4 sim plicity
• Note the follow ing irregularities:
safe safety
various 4 variety

Nouns in-hood
 u n itQ 9

U 2 SS2 3 L ____________________________________________________________________________________

When you are asked to form a derivative, first check what part of speech the missing word is; it
could be a noun, a verb, an adjective or an adverb. Then, check what form of the missing word you
should supply.

• Nouns can be in the singular or plural form . The plural of most nouns is form ed by adding the endings -s or
-es to the singular form of the noun.

Root Word Deriving noun-singular Deriving noun-plural

action actions
act
activity activities

• Adjectives and adverbs can be in the positive, comparative or superlative degree. One-syllable adjectives
and adverbs and some tw o-syllable adjectives form th eir comparative degree in -er and th e ir superlative
degree in -est.

Root Word Derivatives Comparative Superlative

lucky (adj) luckier luckiest
luc k (n o u n)
luckily (adv) more luckily most luckily

fast (adj/adv) — faster fastest

deeper deepest
deep (adj/adv)
deeply more deeply most deeply

Adverbs in -ly and adjectives w ith more than tw o syllables form th e ir com parative and superlative
degrees w ith more and most +adjective/adverb respectively. You w ill not be asked to form the
com parative /su perla tive degree o f such adjectives and adverbs in this part of the exam ination.

• Verbs can be e ither in the Present Simple, the Past Simple, the -ing form or they could be Past Participles.

Root Word Derivatives Form Examples

Present Simple -s/-es in the 3rd endanger-s

person singular mistake-s
danger endanger
Past Simple -ed endangered
irreg ula r fo rm ation m istook

-ing form endangering

■ing
m istaking
mistake
mistake -ed endangered
Past Participle
irregular form a tion mistaken

• Present participles in -ing and past participles in -ed/ irregula r forms are also used as adjectives.
interest 4 interesting / interested
grow growing / grown
 unit 11

This unit deals with adjectives, adverbs and nouns that derive from verb roots.
i
Verb Root Adjective = verb + -able

accept acceptable

• Many adjectives in -able sig n ify th a t w h at the verb describes can be done.
believe 4 believable = that can be believed
• Some adjectives in -able de riving from verb roots have a differe n t m eaning:
agree -4 agreeable (=pleasant)
consider -4 considerable (=great in a m ou nt, substantial)
• Some othe r com m on verbs th at fo rm adjectives in the same way are: advise, bear, cure, depend, enjoy, identify,
predict, prefer, recognise, remark and respect.
• When the verb roo t ends in -ate, the -ate is replaced by -able.
irritate 4 irritable tolerate 4 tolerable
• When the verb roo t ends in -e, the -e is dropped before the ending -able, unless there is a vowel, a c or a g
before the -e.
admire 4 admirable notice 4 noticeable change 4 changeable
• Adjectives in -able form adverbs in -ably: prefer -4 pre ferable -4 preferably

Verb Root Adjective = verb + -ible

o °
access accessible

• Many adjectives in -ible sign ify th a t w ha t th e ve rb describes can be done.

accessible = that can be accessed
• Some othe r com m on verbs th at fo rm adjectives in th e same way are: convert, digest, resist and sense.
• When the verb root ends in -d or -de, the -d / -de changes into -s befo re the ending -ible:
comprehend 4 comprehensible divide 4 divisible
• When the verb roo t ends in -mit, the -t changes into -ss before the ending -ible.
pe rm it 4 permissible
• Adjectives in -ible form adverbs in -ibly: sense -4 sensible -4 sensibly
............. —
Verb Root Noun = verb + -ery

cook cookery

• Some othe r com m o n verbs th a t form nouns in th e same way are: rob and trick.
• When the verb ends in -e or -er, the -e/-er is replaced by -ery.
discover -4 discovery forge -4 forgery

-- -ent - -ence
Verb Root Adjective = verb + < Noun = verb + CT
— -ant ance
confide con fiden t co nfidence
ignore ignorant ignorance

• Some o the r com m on verbs th a t form adjective s in -ent and nouns in -ence are: correspond, depend, diffe r and
exist.
• An othe r com m on verb tha t form s an adjective in -ant and a noun in -ance is: resist
• When the verb roo t ends in -ate, the -ate is replaced by the -ant and the -ance:
tolerate 4 tolerant -4 tolerance
• Some verb roots form on ly nouns in -ance, not adjectives in -ant:
assist 4 assistance attend -4 attendance
unit |1

Some adjectives and nouns w hich derive fro m verb roots do not follo w the rules presented above:
appear 4 apparent 4 appearance perform 4 perform ing 4 performance
insure 4 insured 4 insurance please -4 pleasant 4 pleasure
interfere 4 interfering 4 interference signify 4 significant 4 significance
obey obedient obedience
................. .....— .......— ........... ..................- —
Verb Root Noun (perso n) =verb + -ant

assist assistant

• Nouns in -ant refe rring to people signify a person th a t does w hat the verb describes.
• Some o the r com m on verbs th a t fo rm nouns in the same way are: account, attend, consult, contest, defend,
depend, inhabit and serve.
• When the verb root ends in -ate or -y, the -ate/-y are replaced by -ant.
immigrate 4 imm igrant occupy -4 occupant
• Be careful w ith the noun (person) deriving from the verb apply.
apply 4 applicant

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the words in capitals.

1 I have to buy a ________ cookery_________ boo k as I 'm ________ hopeless_________ a( cooking. COOK, HOPE
2 There has been a noticeable change in his behaviour lately. NOTICE
3 My frien d was in fo r a(n) unpleasant surprise w hen he saw th at his house had PLEASE
b e e n ________ burgled BURGLE
4 The food at the restaurant w a s tolerable , but the service was awful. TOLERATE
5 I can't stand th is unbearable . heat! I have to buy an air-co nditioner. BEAR
6 This disease is still incurable , so it i s _______advisable__________to be extra CURE, ADVISE
careful.
7 Many students lack i n confidence .w hen it comes to speaking CONFIDE, SPEAK
English.
8 He i s remarkably .cleve r fo r his age. REMARK
9 Some students are to ta lly disobedient______ and th e ir behaviour in general OBEY
is unacceptable ACCEPT
10 Kelly’s house was n o t insured . against fire, so the insurance INSURE, INSURE
com pany w ill no t pay fo r the damage.
11 He was charged w i t h __________ forgery and was im prisoned fo r six years. FORGE
12 My trip to Japan w a s unforgettable . I had an enjoyable tim e. FORGET, ENJOY
13 V is a ________applicants m ust |>,ave t hejr passports w ith them. APPLY
14 Despite his young age, he behaved v ery sensibly
SENSE

Examination Practice

A Read the text below and decide which answer A, B, C or D best fits each space.

A WILD HUNT
Living in a modern society, we cannot (1). ignore
the acts of crime that take place every day. Criminal activity
ranges from stealing to the more serious crim es of kidnapping and murder.
Just recently, a hunt was on for tw o men who (2 )_________ robbed an off-licence in broad daylight. The shop owner tried
 unit 12

This u n it deals w ith nouns and adjectives which derive from verb roots.
» |
V e rb R o o t N o u n = v e r b + -io n A d je c tiv e = V e rb + -iv e

impress im pression im pressive

• Some othe r com m on verbs th at fo rm nouns and adjectives in the same way are: act, a ttract, collect, connect,
construct, direct, express, in stru ct, invent, object, possess, prevent, p ro te c t and select.
• Some verbs fo rm only nouns in -ion, not adjectives in -ive: complete, contribute, discuss, inspect, pollute,
predict, reject, revise and suggest.
• Verb roots ending in -m it change the fin al -t to -ss before the endings -ion and -ive:
p erm it 4 perm ission 4 perm issive om it 4 om ission
• Verb roots ending in -d or -de, change the -d/-de to -s before the endings -ion and -ive:
extend 4 extension 4 extensive explode 4 explosion -4 explosive
• Pay atten tion to the fo llo w ing irre gula rities:
attend -4 atte n tio n 4 atten tive defend 4 defence 4 defensive offend -4 offence 4 offensive
• The adjective (in)expensive derives fro m the noun expense.

V e rb R o o t N o u n = v e rb + -a tio n A d je c tiv e = V e rb + -a tiv e

inform inform a tion info rm ativ e

• Some com m on verbs th a t form nouns and adjectives in th e same way are: conserve, im agine and represent.
• Some verbs form only nouns in -ation, n ot adjectives in -ative: combine, invite, oblige, observe, organise, realise,
relax, starve and transform .
• Pay atten tion to the fo llo w ing irre gula rities:
prepare 4 preparation 4 preparatory, sense -4 sensation 4 sensitive, compare 4 comparison 4 comparative

V e rb R o o t in -a te N o u n in - a tio n A d je c tiv e in -a tiv e

appreciate appreciation appreciative

• Some com m on verbs th at form nouns and adjectives in th e same way are: communicate, create, decorate,
operate and relate.
• Some verbs in -ate fo rm only nouns in -ation, not adjectives in -ative: calculate, celebrate, dictate, fascinate,
investigate and separate.
• The verbs educate and hesitate form nouns in -ation, but the corresponding adjectives do n ot end in -ative.
educate 4 education 4 educational hesitate -4 hesitation -4 hesitant

• Pay atte ntion to the follo w in g irregularities:

V e rb N oun A d je c tiv e V e rb N oun |

add addition — introduce in tro d u ction in tro d u c to ry
com pete co m p etition com petitiv e oppose o pposition —

consume consum ption — produce p rod uction productive

describe description descriptive receive reception receptive
destroy de structio n de structive reduce reduction —

explain explanation expla natory repeat rep etitio n re petitive

• Certain nouns in -ion and adjectives in -ive do n ot derive from verbs:

aggression -4 aggressive mass -4 massive

V e rb R o o t N o u n = v e rb + -al

betray betrayal

• Some com m on verbs th a t form nouns in the same way are: approve, arrive, deny, dismiss and rent.
 This unit deals with nouns which derive from verb roots.

Verb Root Noun = Verb + -ment

The process or the result of doing w hat the verb

describes

develop dev elopm ent

• Some othe r comm on verbs th a t fo rm nouns in the same way are: achieve, agree, amaze, amuse, announce,
appoint, argue, arrange, employ, entertain, excite, im prove, punish, replace and require.

Verb Root Noun = Verb + -ure

depart dep arture

• Some other com m on verbs th at fo rm nouns in the same way are: expose, fail, please and press.
• The verb cre ate form s a noun in -ure, b ut its meaning is diffe rent:
create creature
• Pay atten tion to the follo w ing irregularities:
m ix 4 m ixture proceed ^ procedure sign 4 signature

Verb Root Noun (Person)= Verb + -er /-or

The person w ho does w ha t the ve rb describes

train trainer
ope rate operator

• Some o the r com m o n verbs th a t form nouns in -er are: advertise, announce, consume, employ, examine, found,
hunt, insure, interview, observe, organise, own, perform , produce, re p o rt and work.
• Some other com m on verbs th at fo rm nouns in -o r are: act, collect, construct, contribute, create, decorate,
direct, govern, inspect, instruct, invent, investigate and protect.

!
Verb Root Noun (Thing)= Verb + -er /-or

The th ing th a t does w ha t the verb describes

record recorder
calculate calc ulator

• Some o ther com m o n verbs th a t fo rm nouns in -er are: blend, compute, cook, m ix and p rin t.
• Some other com m on verbs th at form nouns in -or are: react, refrigerate and sense.

Verb Root Noun (Person)= Verb + -ee

The person w ho receives the action described by the

verb
em ploy employee

• Some o the r com m on verbs th a t fo rm n ou ns in the same way are: examine, interview, pay, refer, train and trust.