Are you wondering what prefixes and suffixes are? Would you like to understand better how to use them? You've come to the right place, then. In this article, you'll learn everything you need to know.
In short:
This guide is part of our free online Grammar Book.
Prefixes and suffixes are groups of letters that you add to the beginning and end of a word, respectively. Adding a prefix to a word changes its meaning, while adding a suffix changes it from one part of speech to another.
I like to think of prefixes and suffixes as a secret code. Once you understand what they mean and how they work, not only will this help you spell words correctly, but you can also decode words you've never even heard of by deconstructing their parts.
Take the word 'detoxify,' for example. Let's imagine you've never heard this word before, but you know the prefix 'de' means something is removed or reduced, and the suffix 'ify' means 'to become.' The base word that remains is 'tox,' which comes from the noun 'toxin.' You can deduct that the word 'detoxify' means to remove toxins so that something becomes toxin-free.
detoxify
de - tox - ify
Some words get prefixes added to them, and some get suffixes, while others have both, like the word 'detoxify' we just learned.
Prefixes are a group of letters added to the beginning of a word to change its meaning. Words containing a prefix are made up of the prefix + base word.
There are many different types of prefixes, but the most common type is the one that changes an adjective to an adjective with an opposite meaning. These are known as negative prefixes.
Here are some examples of prefixes that do that:
The following prefixes do the same thing but with verbs:
And these perform the same role as nouns:
But not all prefixes give the word its opposite meaning.
Here are some prefixes that change the word's meaning in other ways:
There are even prefixes made specifically for units of measurement:
There are so many prefixes in the English language; it would be difficult to cover them all here today. But what I will do is show you examples of more prefixes used in complete sentences, so you can see what they look like in the wild.
I love chatting to my co-workers in the office.
They've commisioned a special submarine to spy on the neighboring countries.
He recently released his autobiography.
Sounds like she's launching into one of her monologues again!
I'm learning to cultivate more self-love.
You might have noticed in the examples we've looked at so far that some prefixes are connected to the base word with a hyphen while others aren't. So what's gives? How do you know whether or not you should use one in your writing?
If you don't follow a style guide, here are a few guidelines to help you know when to hyphenate.
Using a hyphen is usually recommended if your base word is a proper noun when adding a prefix.
This all happened pre-First-World-War.
He was pretty adamant that he was anti-Brexit.
We're going on a vacation on a trans-Pacific cruise ship.
You'll usually use a hyphen if your prefix ends with the same vowel as the base word's first letter. As a reminder, our vowels are 'a,' 'e,' 'i,' 'o,' 'u,' and sometimes 'y.'
For example:
I feel completely re-energized after that delicious meal.
You should try an anti-inflammatory diet.
It's a self-fuliflling prophecy.
The exception to this is when the vowel is 'o.' Often (but not always), you don't need to use a hyphen between a prefix ending in 'o' and the base word beginning with 'o.' One example of this is 'cooperate.' An example that shows this isn't always true is 'co-owner.'
Sometimes using a hyphen can help avoid ambiguity. For example, without the hyphen, the two 'o's in 'coowner' could be read with the /uː/ sound to make the word /ku:nər/, which isn't a real word. That's why we use a hyphen to show the word should be read 'co-owner.'
In other words, it can help you not confuse one word for another. For example, if you wanted to add the prefix 're' to the verb 'cover,' you would want to use a hyphen to make the word 're-cover' so as not to form the word 'recover,' which has a different meaning entirely.
These three prefixes are usually followed by a hyphen.
Note that the prefix 'ex' has two meanings: 'previous,' like in the word 'ex-husband,' and 'out from,' like in the word 'extract.' You should only use a hyphen when employing the word in its former meaning—that of 'previous.' It's not needed for the other meaning.
Moreover, the prefix 'ex' differs from the prefix 'extra,' which has an entirely different set of hyphenation conventions.
As I mentioned earlier, these are primarily guidelines, and as you can see, there are exceptions to most of them. Therefore I wouldn't stress about it too much. Just go with your intuition. Most of the time, hyphens aren't necessary, so you might want to think of them as tools for clarification. If the word's meaning is ambiguous without one, try adding one.
And to make extra sure, you can always use a spellchecker. After all, nowadays, most writing is done on word processors, not pieces of paper, so using a spellchecker doesn't cost you anything. It will highlight a misspelled word and help you catch those hyphenated words that shouldn't be, and vice-versa.
If prefixes are added to the beginning of a word, suffixes are added to the end. Words containing a suffix are also made of a base word + a suffix. Sometimes they also have a prefix, like the word 'impossibly,' made up of the prefix 'im,' the base word 'possible,' and the suffix 'ly.'
Let's start there.
Take the root word 'nutrient,' for example. It can be modified to 'nutrition' (noun), 'nutritious' (adjective), and 'nutritiously' (adverb).
Here are some examples of common suffixes that change a word into a noun:
These suffixes change a word into an adjective:
The following suffixes change a word into verbs:
As you might have noticed, sometimes suffixes completely change the spelling of the base word. Other times, there's only a slight difference—just a letter or two. So how do you know what to do with the word's spelling when you add a suffix? Let's find out what the general rules are.
Most of the time, the suffixes '-ness' and '-ly' don't affect the word's spelling. So you just take the base word and add the suffix. Case in point:
red → redness
mad → madness
girl → girly
The exception is if the word ends in the consonant 'y,' in which case you should change the 'y' to an 'i' first.
happy → happiness
heavy → heavily
tidy → tidiness
This exception doesn't apply if the 'y' is employed as a vowel, like in the word 'enjoy' ('enjoy' → 'enjoyable').
Drop the silent 'e' when the suffix begins with a vowel.
For example:
create → creative
cure → curate
vacate → vacation
There are exceptions to this rule though, like with the suffixes '-able' (notice → noticeable) and 'ous' (advantage → advantageous).
And if the base word ends in 'ee' or 'ye:'
agree → agreement
eye → eyeing
free → freedom
Another exception is if the suffix begins with a consonant, keep the silent 'e.'
bare → barely
care → careful
home → homeless
Yes, there are exceptions to this rule, too. Like when the suffix 'ly' comes after a word with a consonant and the letter 'l.' Then, you should remove the silent 'e.' The word 'bubble' is an example: bubble → 'bubbly.'
When the word ends in a consonant + 'y', change the 'y' to an 'i' before adding the suffix.
easy → easier
ugly → uglify
bury → burial
Short words with just one syllable ending in a single consonant will often see said consonant doubled. Case in point:
big → bigger
fat → fatty
tan → tanning
When the suffix begins with a vowel, and the accent is on the last syllable, double the final consonant when adding the suffix.
For example:
forget → forgettable
stop → stopper
refer → referral
The doubling rule doesn't apply to words that end in 'w,' 'x,' or 'y.'
Unlike with prefixes, the rules for suffixes are fixed. There's a correct way to spell a word with a suffix and an incorrect way. With so many rules and so many exceptions, your best bet is just to give yourself the practice you need so that, over time, you'll simply remember the correct spelling.
Again, don't hesitate to get a good spellchecker, as this will always be handy.
That concludes this article on prefixes and suffixes. I hope you found it helpful.
Let's summarize what we've learned:
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