Root Words II


The root is the base part of a word. The root carries the most significant aspects of of a word, and cannot be reduced into smaller parts. By knowing the root of a word, you can often guess at the meaning of the word, even if you have never seen the word before.

Study the word in the chart, then complete the Root Words Exercise.

Root
Meaning
Sample Words
act
do
action, actor, react, activate
bio
life
biology, autobiography, biochemistry
clud
close
exclude, include, conclude
counter
against
counterattack, counterclaim, counteract
de
down
descend, demolish, deplete
fer
carry
ferry, transfer, chauffer
fract
break
fracture, fraction, refract
gram
writing
telegram, grammar, hologram
mar
sea
marine, mariner, submarine
mem
remember
memory, memoir, memo, remember
nav
ship
navy, navigator, circumnavigate
pop
people
population, popular, populate
port
carry
transport, portable, export
rupt
break
rupture, erupt, disrupt, corrupt
scribe
write
scribble, inscribe, describe, transcribe
sect
cut
dissect, section, intersection
sur
over
surplus, surpass, surcharge, surface
tele
far
television, telephone, telescope
tort
twist
contort, torture, distort
uni
one
unicycle, universe, united, union


Last modified: Thursday, 14 June 2012, 4:19 PM