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Root Word
The document provides a comprehensive list of root words, their meanings, origins, and examples. It covers various prefixes and suffixes from Greek and Latin, detailing their definitions and usage in English vocabulary. The content serves as a reference for understanding the etymology of words and their components.
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF or read online on Scribd
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Linke
Root word
aya
a, ab/s
arera
oct
per/o
aarsiso
alg/o
ambi,
amphi
ambul
ami/o
Meanings
not, without
from, auay, off
to, toward,
top, haight,
tip, beginning
do
‘arming
Ofigin Examples and Definitions
Greek abyss without bottom; achromatic - without color; anhydrous - without water
Latin aflre - on fire; ashore - on the shore; aside - on the side
Latin abduct - carry away by force; abnormal - sway fram normal, n
{aversion - the act of turing away from; abbreviate: to ¢
3 avay, aot present:
Latin accelerate - to increase the speed of; accesible pprosched, ar abtsineds
Elna ean ee es 5 sth ane) mateo meee
‘acrophabla-febr of height,
Latin activity - sorvethipi that 2 parepn)dbés; react - to de something in response; interaction
‘communicapiag beeen tho @eatore things
creek aerate
te Inething; aerial - relating to the air; aerospace - the air space
“Snagement ofthe land, agribusiness - making money by utilizing land: agrarian ~
Erase ral tranagemant of land
4 ~ pain caused by = nerve) analgesic - # drug that makes one pain free; oostalais ~ aching
the familiar
ambidextrous - able to use both hands equally; ambiguous - having more than one meaning;
[ambivalence ~ conflicting or opposite feelings toward @ person or thing
Latin _amble - to wall in a slow, relaxed way; ambulant - walking or moving around; ambulance - a vehicle
that moves 2 patient
Latin amiable - friendly, pleasant, lovable; amity - friendly and peaceful relations; amorous ~ showing
romrareed KoveLink Root word Meanings
=
fe
andr/o
ann/enn
ante
anth/o
anthrop/o
anti
‘apo, apho.
aqu/a
arbor
up, back, Greek
against,
again,
throughout
man, male Greek
Wife, spit Latin
year Latin
before, in front Latin
flower Greek
human Greek
againct,
‘opposite
sepal
wate Latin
trea Latin
Origin Examples and Definitions
analysis a close examination of something; anatomy - the structure of something as visible when
Cut up for analysis; anachronism - not being in the right place in time
androgynous ~ being both male and female; android ~ resembling & hi sandry ~ hatred
towards men
antacede - to come before ntumneridian - before noon; anteroom- a small room
before the main room
amaranth > jattes of flowers; anthology ~ a collection of treasured writings;
half ahi, like anemones and corals.
id; anthropomorphism - giving human form to non-human things;
he Tove to mankind (expressed through good deeds)
antigay 2 substance that destrays micro-organisms; antiseptic - preventing infection; antisocial -
Sng social norm
aphorism ~ 2 short expression of 2 general truth; apology ~ an explicit expression of regret,
apostrophe ~ 2 small dash used in place of an omitted letter
aquarium ~ a water container for fish; aquatic- relating to water; aqueduct - a pipeline for water
arborist - someone working with trees; arbor - a shady area formed by trees; areoraus - having many
aksRoot word
arch/i
arch/a/i
arthr/o
art
astro,
aster
aud/ifio
auto
avi/a
bar/o
belli
bin
ae
a Benda bent = epi. 80/5 Fg OU I OHO ATOR
‘once in every invalving two sidesRoot word
bibtive
blast/o
burs
cand
apts cont,
cardi/o
carnsi
cata
coust,
cede,
ceed,
Meanings Origin Examples and Definitions
book Greek bibliography - alist of books used as sources; bibliomania ~ an extreme love of books: bibliophile - a
person who loves books
le, living Greek _biography- a life story written by another person; biology - the science of lfe; biosphere - Earth's
matter surface inhabited by living things
call, primitive, Greek _blastula - an early stage of embryonic development; fibroblast -
Immature cell blastoderm ~ the layer sumcunding the inside of am 299,
1 Gio conacve issue
pouch, purse Latin bursar- an administrative officer in charge of funds) bursa!
Gisburse- to expand especially from a publle fund
2 collage or monastery:
stone Latin calcite: calcu tre hame of acetylene gas ganerataSy ret calcium cabice with
Sibson caleensonsInvpregaaton heh cae :
slowing, Latin. candid: trae from bias, prejudice, open ething that gives ight: incandescent: white
Hicascane Slowing, or hminaus vith intense
take, hold Latin intercept ~to stop or inter
paresive to take nofag of om7etTiny\Sstivating - taking hold oF
heart cardiogenic - resulting from heart disease;
ardiologist ~ a haart doctor
flesh, meat }9; carnal - pertaining to the body er flesh; incarnate - given bodily form
‘down, against 150 oF ther disaster, catalog ~ a complete listing; catastrophe - turning for the worst,
‘completely, i cicastor
‘ecording:
toburn ‘auterize - to burn with a hot instrument; caustic - capable of burning or eating away: holocaust ~
total devastation, especially by fire
92, viele Latin exceed - to go beyond the limits; recede - to go back; accessible - easily entered, approaches, or
obtaines|celer fast Latin accelerate - to increase the speed of; decelerate - to reduce the speed of
cent/i hundred, Latin.__centennial- the 100th anniversary; centimeter - 1/100 of a meter; century - 100 years
hundredth
centr/ofi center Greek egocentric - self-centered; eccentric - nat having a common center, not according to norm; centrifugal
- moving outward from a center
cephal/o head Greek encephalitis - inflammation of the brain; cephalic - part
mollusks lke octopus and squid who have es
seen ~ marine
ead
cerebr/o brain Latin cerebral - pertaining to the brain; cer in; cerebrospinal - pertaining to the brain
and the spinal cord
cert sure Latin blab’ . 0 Reet Ps certain - being absolutely sure; certify - to state that
chrom/o cola, pigment AC color; chromium - a blue-nhite metallic chemical element, chromatic - the
cchromat/o, calor
chros
chron/o time “Greek chronic lasting for along time; chronological - arranging events in time order, synchronize -
happening at the same time
hrys/o gold, yellow Greek chrysanthemum and helchrysum - golden/yellow flowers; chrysolite- a yellonish gem
cide, cise cut, kill Latin homicide - murder; incisor - a sharp tooth for cutting food; insecticide - a chemical used to kill insectss
cide, cise
circum,
circle
clud, clus
line
co
col
com.
cogn/i
con
cut, Kil
around, about
shout, speak
out
clear
close
lean
with, together,
joint
together,
jointly
togethe
commd
know
with, joint
Latin
Latin
Latin
Latin
Latin
Latin
Latin
Latin
Latin
homicide - murder; incisor - a sharp toath for cutting food; insecticide - a chemical used to kill insects
circumnavigate - to sal around; clrcumscribe - to drat around} circumspect ~ looking around
clamor to shout and make noise; exclaim - to cry out loudiy and suddenly, proclamation =
something announced offically in public
cafe pnt to mae tng tar BS gate oti ny
conclusion - the end or last part; exclusion - LR 13} Beclude - to keep away from; to
isolate vs
inclination - a leaning =< slopes or leans; recne - to lean back and relax
coauthor: one
Soa another author; coeducation - educating males and females
ee =) neighborhood in an intentional neighborly fashion
ka together colision - smashing together; colloquial - words formed by everday
commemorate - to memorize together; composition - an arrangement or putting together of parts;
commune - living together while owning things in common
cognition - process of acquiring knowledge; incognito - disquised so no one knows you; recognize - to
discover that one knows
concur = to agree with someone; contemporary - of the same time period as others; convention - a
gathering of people with a common interestcontra/o
corp/o
cosm/o
counter
cranio
cred
‘crypto
cumul
‘curr, curs
oye
agsinst, Latin contradict to argue against, Cotraflon, contraception, contrary net in agreement, controversy
sca disagrasmert
voy Latin corporation 2 company recogrized by law 25 a singe body; corpse a dead body; corporal -
praca babebey
universe Greek cosmonaut - a Russian astronaut; cosmos - the universe; microcosm - a miniature universe
oppose, counteract to oppose the effects ofan action; countermand +1 eancBb preous order
ay earlier sa dsapet ar ae
Greek caniology- the study of ms cist See craial- pertaining to
the stl
believe Latin credence - bg ei cnt) ie Or valid; credulous - believing things too easily, gullible;
incredible -
ety Lag ‘Fer having the for ofa crocs jeu the cross self as 2 Chistian ember;
|-~so intense as to cause great pain or anguish
hideeh uk of hidden meaning; cryptography scence of secret codes; encrypt - encode nt secret cade
mass, féap> Latin accumulate - to gather or pile up: cumulative - gradually building up
run Latin concurrent running parallel; current flowing easily and smoothly; cusive- having a flowing, easy,
impromptu character
circle, ring Greek bicycle - a vehicle with to whee!s; cycle - a sequence that is repeated; cyclone - a storm with
circling windsde
dec/a,
deka
deci
dem/o
demi
dendr/o/i
dent, dont
derm/a
di/plo
di/s
reduce, away, Latin
down, remove
ten Greek
onetenth Latin
people Greek
half less than Latin
tree Greek
tooth ti
skin
two, tite Greek
apart, away, Latin
not, tothe
opposite
decelerate - to slow down, reduce speed; dethrone - to remove from power; debug to remove bugs
decade - 10 years; decathlon - athletic contest that includes 10 disciplines in which each participant
competes; December - formerly the 10th month of the Roman calendar
deciliter -a tenth of a liter; decimate - reduce dramatically; decibel - one tenth of the sound volume
unit bel »
democracy - government of the people; demogra ple epidemic - spreading
among people in a region
emitasse - a small cup of coffesy Werbi
we of litle respecte life style
philodendron «2 oS aresFoLo\ on trees; dendrochonology - dating evens by studing
grow Eanes dendrifornt - in the shape of a tree
eth; dentist ~ a doctor forthe teeth; dentures - a set of flee teeth
tologist ~a doctor forthe skin; pachyderm - a class of animals with very thick skin (elephant,
rhinoceros); dermatitis - inflammation ofthe skin
ichromatic- displaying two colors; diploma - a certificate, literally "a letter folded double"; dilemma -
a situation that requires 2 choice between two alternatives.
digression - a departure from the main issue, subject; disappear - to move out of sight; dissect -to
cut apart piece by piecedia
dict
domin
don/at
due/t
ufo
dur
dyn/a/am
dys
through, Greek _Glabetes - disease characterized by excessive thirst and discharge of urine; diagnosis - understanding
between, a condition by going through a detailed review of symptoms; dialog ~ conversation between two
apart, across people,
speak Latin contradict - to express the opposite af; prediction - a statement foreteling the future; dictate - to
speak out loud for another person to write down,
master Latin dominate - to be the master of; domineering - excessively cn yninate «to have more
power than others
give Latin donation - a contribution or git don BS be thing; pardon - to give forgiveness
for an offense
lead Latin conduct - to lead eryscian 6; ES to lead to knowledge; deduction - a
subtraction 6 CES
two, twice Lat 2 Nee copy; duet - a musical composition fortwo voices or instruments; duo ~
ally thought of as being together,
hard frable - having the quality of lasting; duration - the length of time something lasts; enduring - able
last, toast,
power, energy, Greek dynamo - a generator of energy; dynamic - having physical energy/pawer; dynamite - a powerful
strength explosive,
‘abnormal, bad Greek dyspepsia - abnormal digestion; dystopia - an imaginary place of total misery; dyslexia - impairment
of the ability to handle words,enn/i, anni
eli
equ/i
erg/o
esth/aesth
out, away
sett
into, cover
with, cause
within, inside
Latin
Latin
Greek
Greek
Latin
inside, inwards. Latin
among, at,
after,
to, outside
«ol fD)
work
feeling,
sensstlon,
beauty
Greek
Latin
‘eloquent - speaking beautifully and forcefully: emissary - a representative of a country or group sent
‘on a mission; eject throw out forcefully.
‘egolstic- self-centered; alter ego - a higher aspect of oneself; egomania - excessive preoccupation,
with oneself,
‘empathy ~ intention to feel ike another person; empower ~ put into power; engorge ~ make larger
cpistaqt; endocrine - relating to
‘to marry nithin one's
‘endotherm - a creature that can keep its inside temperature fe
slands that cecrate directly into the blood or lymph er
clan, tribe ete
bicentennial - of or relating te an ag
period of 100 years; perann
‘envision - to pictyre in th
‘an earthquake,
—efite
=)
on, upon, over, Greek So Ch waged ern negative; epllogue ~ a short speech delivered after @ play;
“2quidistant - an equal distance from two paints; equanimity - calm temperament, evenness of
temper; equation - a statement of equality.
‘ergonomics - study of the warking environment; energy - the power to accamplish work; energetics -
science that looks at energy and its transformation.
esthetician - someone who beauties; aesthetic - pertaining to a sense of beauty: kinesthesia - the
sensation of bodily movement.ethno
eu
extra, extro
facit
fer
fid
fect
flor/a,
fleur
for
race, people Greek ethnic - pertaining to a defined group of people; ethnocentric - focusing on the ethnicity of people;
ethnology - the science of people and races
good, well Greek euphemism replacing an offensive word with an inoffensive one; euphonious - having a pleasant
sound; euphoria - feeling of well-being.
from, out, Latin excavate - to dig out; exhale - to breathe out; extract - to pull out
outside, Latin extraordinary - beyond ordinary; extraterrestrial - outside the & ert - an outgoing person
beyond
make, do Latin artifact - an object made by a person; fac Uplihe made: mala: -a pron
who does wrong.
bear, bring, Latin canfor- to bring an eS 9 eee transfer - to move to
carry another place
bend ti Ee Sars becuse of hit ng something; inflection - a bending in the voice's tone or
lexible - easily bending,
tone SV) Foresman wetng en fours footie asthe pte fs att
ee
completely forsaken or forfeited ~ completely ost; forgiven ~ completely given (a release of debt).
(used to
intensify.
the meaning of
a word)‘
&
fore
form
fract, frag
fug
funct
fus
gastr/o
gen/o/e/
genesis
geo
ger
in front of, forebear - ancestor; forebade - to give an advance warning of something bad; forecast - a preview of
previous, events to be.
earlier
shape Latin conformity- correspondence in form, manner, or character; formation- something that is
formed; reformatory- intended for reformation
break Latin fracture - 2 break; fragile - easy to break; fragment or fraction - a partor element of a larger whole;
flee, run away, Latin fugitive - a person who is running away; refuge - a sheltered place t y refugee - a person
fail to work correctly.
pour Latin confusion - being flooded
heating; infuse - put into,
mation that is hard to make sense of; fuse - to melt by
stomach stomach; gastronomy - serving the stomach by providing good food;
tion of the stomach,
birth, gy the study of the history of a family; generation all the people born at approximately the
prod sme time; genetic -ralating to heredity encoded in the genes,
formal
kind
earth, sai, Greek —geagraphy - study of the earth's surface; geology - study of the structure of the earth; geaponics -
glotal soil based agriculture.
old age Greek geriatrics - medicine pertaining to the elderly; gerantocracy - the rule ofthe elders; gerontology - the
sence of aging.giga
gon
gram
gran
graph/y
grat
gyn/oje
gress,
grad/e/i
hect/o,
hecat
helic/o
a billion Greek gigabyte - unit of computer storage space;
unit of electric power (one billion watt).
jigahertz - unit of frequency (one billion Hz/sec); gigawet
angle Latin decagon - a polygon with 10 afigles:
Greak geometrical figure with 8 angles.
-diagonal - a slanting line running across a space; octagon - a
letter, written Greek diagram - a simple drawing; grammar - rules of how to write words in sentences; telegram - 2
message sent by telegraph. (\
grain Latin granary- a storehouse or repository for asin especial Shel yr husked; granala- a
mixture of rolled oats and other ingredients; g eS yfalo\(as of sugar)
witing, Greek Graphology - the study of hand fen with one's own hand; seismograph - a
recording, machine noting strength aff duletis es.
written
=)
pleasing latin of cpm feeling thankful; gratuity ~a tip, token of appreciation.
je
i
a
worman, k(_gyhefoidgh “the science of female reproductive health; gynephobia - fear of women; gynecoid -
feral ing a woman.
to ste “Se digression - a departure from the main issue, subject, et.; progress - movement forward or onward
gradual - step by step.
hundres Greek hectolter - 100 liters; hectare - metric unit equaling 100 ares or 10,000 square meters; hectometer
100 meters.
spiral, circular Greek helicopter ~ an aircraft with horizontal rotating wing; helix -a spiral form; helicon - a cular tuba,helio
hemi
hem/o/a
hepa
hept/a
herbi
hetero
hex/a
histo
homo,
homeo
sun Greek heliotropism - movement or growth in relating to the sun; heliograph - apparatus used to send
‘message with the help of sunlight; hellanthus - genus of plants including sunflowers.
half partial Greek hemicycle - a semicircular structure; hemisphere - one half of the earth; hemistich- half a line of
poetry.
blood Latin hemorrhage - clotting ofthe blood; hemorrhoids - swelling of the blood vessels; hemoglobin - red
Greek blood particle
at
liver Latin hepatitis - inflammation of the liver; hepatoma - 2 1 toxic - toxic and
damaging to the liver. OV
seven Greek heptagon - 2 shape with seven angles bdvel ptateuch the first seven books of the Old
Testament; heptameter - a isting of seven metrical feet.
of
eN
grass, plant Latin herbicide - hese i dnwanted plants, ee.; herbivorous - plant-eating; herbel -
al 2
reltin
\\-
diferent, (rt f
[Symbolic figura in magic: pentathlon an athistic contest that includes five events.
‘dyspepsia ~ abnormal digestion; peptic ~ siding digestion; pepsin
permanent - Insting thraughaut alltime; perme -
fang time: perennial ~ lasting through mapy-yeal
periodontal - pertaining to bone apd Feu BSWHF poripheral - lying outside of the center;
Perimeter - the cuter Bouny _
ive enzyme,
bout? persist - co continue for a
‘esophagus - muscular tubs jel\Sad to the stomach; anthrapophaay or sarcophaay
‘cannibalism; xyloptiggous ~ Feesing. bn wood.
philantfvon Jove Rumanity; philology - the love of words: philosophy - the love of
on el ig books.
‘adgepohy\ sud, unpleasant sounds; microphone - 2 davice that records and amplifies sound:
phaetic “relating to human speech sounds
Yotogenic - caused by light: photograph - image made on light-sensitive fim; photon - the smallest
possible unit of light.
chlorophyll a group of green pigments found in leaves: phyllotaxis - the arrangement of leaves on =
stem: phyllite —9 rock that forms sheets, similar to slate
physical
lating to the body: physician - a doctor; physique ~ nature and shape of one's body,
‘epiphyte - a plant growing Independant on the surface of another: hydrophyte -a plant that grows
Seite Wilken} notaierls "a baiienby. Capacisllt & purcune coLdehiy craverted tao teary bola