Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

gen(e)-/gon- [from Greek]

(verb)

to beget

cosmogony

genealogy [literally, ‘speech about begetting;’ the family ancestry (tree) of a person.]

genesis [literally, ‘the begetting;’ the coming into being of a thing.]

genetics [literally, ‘skill in begetting;’ the science that studies heredity and inherited traits.]

hydrogen

theogony [literally, ‘the begetting of the gods;’ a narration of the origin and genealogy of the gods.]

cosmogony (noun) [literally, ‘begetting the world;’ an account of the origin of the universe.]

hydrogen (noun) [literally, ‘begetting water;’ a colorless, element, the lightest of all gases, and the commonest element in the universe.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

-ar [from Latin]

(suffix)

pertaining to

cellular [literally, pertaining to cells.’]

familiar [literally, ‘pertaining to the family;’ frequently experienced; comfortable.]

granular [literally, ‘pertaining to little grains;’ composed of grains or granules.]

popular

regular [literally, pertaining to the rules;’ usual; typical; in accordance with expectations.]

secular

popular (adjective) [literally, ‘pertaining to a people;’ very well liked; liked by many persons.]

secular (adjective) [literally, ‘pertaining to the (current) generation;’ worldly (as opposed to spiritual or religious); not religious.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

pher-/phor- [from Greek]

(verb)

to bear

amphora [literally, ‘bearing around;’ a jar used by the Greeks to carry oil.]

euphoria [literally, ‘bearing (oneself) well;’ a feeling of extreme well-being.]

metaphor [literally, ‘borne after or with;’ a figure of speech in which one thing is identified with another.]

periphery

pheromone [literally, ‘impulse-bearing thing;’ A chemical secreted by an animal that influences the behavior of others of the same species.]

phosphorus

periphery (noun) [literally, ‘borne around;’ circumference; perimeter.]

phosphorus (noun) [literally, ‘bearer of light;’ a nonmetallic element that exists in three allotropic forms and that is an essential constituent of protoplasm.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

aud- [from Latin]

(verb)

to hear

audible [literally, ‘hearable;’ what is heard or can be heard.]

audio [literally, ‘I hear;’ the sending, receiving, or reproducing of sound.]

audit [literally, ‘he or she hears;’ checking of financial records to ascertain their accuracy.]

audition

auditorium [literally, ‘place for hearing;’ a large room in which performances may be heard and seen.]

clairaudience

audition (noun) [literally, ‘a hearing;’ an act of hearing; a demonstration of a performance.]

clairaudience (noun) [literally, ‘clear hearing;’ the alleged ability to hear things outside the normal range of human hearing.]