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Word Formation: Prefixes, Suffixes, and Compounds
Understanding how words are formed in English helps you expand your vocabulary and decode unfamiliar words. The main word formation processes are affixation (prefixes and suffixes), compounding, and conversión.
Prefixes (change meaning, NOT word class)
| Prefix | Meaning | Examples |
|---|
| un-, in-, im-, il-, ir-, dis- | Negative / opposite | unhappy, incorrect, impossible, illegal, irregular, disagree |
| mis- | Wrongly | misunderstand, misspell, mislead |
| re- | Again | rewrite, rebuild, reconsider |
| over- | Too much | overwork, overcook, overestimate |
| under- | Too little / below | underpaid, underestimate, underground |
| pre- | Before | preview, preschool, prehistoric |
| post- | After | postwar, postgraduate |
| co- | Together | cooperate, coexist, co-worker |
| anti- | Against | antisocial, antibacterial |
| multi- | Many | multicultural, multilingual |
Suffixes (often change word class)
| Suffix | Change | Examples |
|---|
| -tion, -sion, -ment, -ness, -ity | Verb/Adj --> Noun | education, decisión, achievement, happiness, creativity |
| -er, -or, -ist, -ian | Verb/Noun --> Person | teacher, actor, scientist, musician |
| -ful, -less, -ous, -ive, -able, -ible, -al, -ical | Noun/Verb --> Adj | beautiful, careless, dangerous, creative, enjoyable, visible, musical, historical |
| -ly | Adj --> Adv | quickly, carefully, fortunately |
| -ise/-ize, -en, -ify | Noun/Adj --> Verb | modernise, widen, simplify |
Recuerda
Negative prefix rules: "im-" before b, m, p (impossible, imbalance, immature); "il-" before l (illegal, illiterate); "ir-" before r (irregular, irresponsible); "in-" before other consonants and vowels (incorrect, inadequate). "Un-" and "dis-" have no fixed phonetic rules and must be learnt for each word.
Compounds and conversión
Compounds: Two words combined to form one: football, smartphone, well-known, hard-working, greenhouse, mother-in-law.
Conversión (zero derivation): A word changes class without any change in form: email (noun) --> to email (verb); to run (verb) --> a run (noun); clean (adjective) --> to clean (verb).
Ejercicios
1. Form the opposite using a negative prefix: polite, responsible, legal, patient, agree, understand, regular, possible, honest, appropriate.
2. Complete the word families:
a) create (verb) --> ___ (noun) --> ___ (adjective) --> ___ (adverb)
b) success (noun) --> ___ (adjective) --> ___ (verb) --> ___ (adverb)
c) beauty (noun) --> ___ (adjective) --> ___ (verb) --> ___ (adverb)
3. Use the word in brackets to form a new word that fits the gap:
a) His ___ (behave) in class was unacceptable.
b) She is a very ___ (create) person.
c) The film was really ___ (enjoy).
d) I was ___ (appoint) by the results.
Test de autoevaluación
1. The prefix "mis-" means:
a) Again
b) Not
c) Wrongly
d) Too much
2. The suffix "-ness" changes:
a) A verb to a noun
b) An adjective to a noun
c) A noun to a verb
d) An adjective to an adverb
3. The correct negative form of "responsible" is:
a) unresponsible
b) inresponsible
c) irresponsible
d) disresponsible
4. "Modernise" is formed by adding the suffix "-ise" to:
a) A noun
b) An adjective
c) A verb
d) An adverb
5. A compound word is:
a) A word with a prefix
b) Two words combined to form one
c) A word with a suffix
d) A word that changes class without changing form