Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

terr- [from Latin]

(noun)

earth

to inter

subterranean [literally, ‘pertaining to what is under the earth;’ located below the earth’s surface or underground; hypogeal.]

terrace [literally, ‘earthy/earthen;’ an open outdoor living area which extends from a house; a patio.]

terrain

terrestrial [literally, ‘of the earth;’ pertaining to the earth or to those who dwell upon it.]

territory [literally, ‘demarcated earth;’ an area of land either privately owned or under the control of a larger political entity.]

to inter (verb) [literally, ‘to enearth;’ to bury.]

terrain (noun) [literally, ‘pertaining to the earth;’ a land area or its characteristics.]

ge(o)- [from Greek]

(noun)

earth

apogee [literally, ‘away from the earth;’ the point in the orbit of a satellite which is farthest away from the celestial body which is orbited.]

geocentric [literally, ‘pertaining to the earth (as) center;’ of the center of the earth; having the earth as the center, as in the geocentric theory of the universe.]

geography [literally, ‘writing about the earth;’ the study of the physical or surface characteristics of the earth.]

geology [literally, ‘speech about the earth;’ the science that studies the structure of the earth.]

geomancy

geometry

geomancy (noun) [literally, ‘earth divination;’ predicting the future by means of lines and figures.]

geometry (noun) [literally, ‘measuring the earth;’ the branch of mathematics that studies and describes the characteristics of points, lines, angles, surfaces, and solids.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

scrib-/script- [from Latin]

(verb)

to write

to circumscribe [literally, ‘to write around;’ to draw a line around; to limit closely or to restrict.]

conscription

to describe [literally, ‘to write down;’ to give a picture-like account; to draw the outline of a geometrical figure.]

postscript [literally, ‘written after;’ a message added as an afterthought to a letter or a book.]

to prescribe [literally, ‘to write before;’ to posit regulations; to direct the use of something, such as medicine.]

scribble

conscription (noun) [literally, ‘writing together;’ compelling into service, especially military service; drafting into service.]

scribble (noun) [literally, ‘little writing;’ hasty writing that borders on illegibility or meaninglessness.]

graph-/gram- [from Greek]

(verb)

to write

autobiography

diagram [literally, ‘a thing written through;’ ’ an illustrative or explanatory sketch or drawing.]

epigram [literally, ‘writing upon;’ a brief, frequently witty, statement of a sentiment, either in prose or in poetry.]

grammar [literally, ‘writing skill;’ the system of rules that governs the use of a language.]

photograph

telegram [literally, ‘writing from afar;’ a message sent by means of electric impulses through wires.]

autobiography (noun) [literally, ‘writing one’s lifetime oneself;’ a person’s written account of his or her own life story.]

photograph (noun) [literally, ‘writing with light;’ an image produced by light on a chemically sensitive surface.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

nov- [from Latin]

(adjective)

new

innovation [literally, ‘making something new;’ the devising of something previously unconceived.]

nova

novelty [literally, ‘a new thing;’ an unusual (and/or new) thing.]

novice [literally, ‘a new person;’ a beginner in an activity.]

novitiate [literally, ‘new-personness;’ the period of time during which one is a beginner or initiate.]

renovate

nova (noun) [literally, ‘new (star);’ a star that suddenly becomes much brighter, then gradually returns to its original brightness.]

to renovate (verb) [literally, ‘to make new again;’ to restore something to its pristine condition, the condition in which it was when it was new.]

ne(o)- [from Greek]

(adjective)

new

neoclassic [literally, ‘new-classic;’ pertaining to a revival of classical forms in art.]

Neolithic [literally, ‘new stone-like;’ pertaining to the period characterized by the development of agriculture and polished stone tools.]

neologism

neon [literally, ‘new;’ one of the inert gases.]

neonatal

neophyte [literally, ‘new-grown;’ a beginner at a job or activity; a newbie.]

neologism (noun) [literally, ‘new speech;’ a newly created word or phrase.]

neonatal (adjective) [literally, ‘newborn;’ pertaining to a just born infant.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

super- [sur-] [from Latin]

(preposition)

over

insuperable

superannuated [literally, ‘over-yeared;’ useless because of excessive old-age; obsolete.]

superfluous [literally, ‘overflowing;’ more than is needed or proper.]

supernatural [literally, ‘over the natural;’ pertaining to what is beyond the natural; divine; miraculous; hyperphysical.]

surreal

to supervise [literally, ‘to oversee;’ to be in charge; to superintend; to direct.]

insuperable (adjective) [literally, ‘unovercomable;’ impossible to overcome.]

surreal (adjective) [literally, ‘over the real;’ dreamlike or super-real.]

hyper- [from Greek]

(preposition)

over

hyperactive [literally, ‘overactive;’ excessively active.]

hyperbola [literally, ‘overthrowing;’ the locus (graph) of a point which moves in a plane in such a way that the difference of its distances from two fixed points is a constant.]

hyperbole

hyperopia [literally, ‘over-seeing;’ farsightedness.]

hypertension [literally, ‘over-stretching;’ unusually high blood pressure.]

hypertrophic

hyperbole (noun) [literally, ‘overthrowing;’ a figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for rhetorical effect.]

hypertrophic (adjective) [literally, ‘over-nourished;’ pertaining to the abnormal enlargement of an organ or tissue.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

duc-/duct- [from Latin]

 (verb)

to lead

to conduct [literally, ‘to lead together with;’ to direct, lead, or guide; to transmit heat, light, sound, or an electrical discharge.]

to deduce

to induce

to introduce [literally, ‘to lead within;’ to present someone or something for the first time to another person or group of persons.]

reduction [literally, ‘leading back;’ bringing down in size or degree.]

to seduce [literally, ‘to lead by itself;’ to lead away from accepted ethical principles and behavior; to lead astray.]

to deduce (verb) [literally, ‘to lead down from;’ to reason from a generalization to particulars.]

to induce (verb) [literally, ‘to lead into or unto;’ to reason from particulars to a generalization; to produce a course of action by force or persuasion.]

agog(ue)- [from Greek]

(verb)

to lead

demagogue

glucagon [literally, ‘leading the sweet;’ a pancreatic hormone that stimulates an increase in blood sugar levels, thereby opposing the action of insulin.]

hypnagogic [literally, ‘leading to sleep;’ inducing sleep; soporific.]

mystagogue [literally, ‘leader of a mystery candidate;’ person who prepares candidates for initiation into a mystery or mystery religion.]

pedagogy [literally, ‘child leading;’ the technique or profession of teaching.]

synagogue

demagogue (noun) [literally, ‘leader of a people;’ a charismatic person who gains power by appealing to the irrational passions of the mass of persons.]

synagogue (noun) [literally, ‘a leading together;’ the house of worship in the Jewish faith.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

pre- [from Latin]

(preposition)

before

[Note: Its original form is ‘prae.’ When the “ae” combination comes from Latin into English, it is typically shortened to ‘e.’]

prelapsarian

to predict [literally, ‘to say before;’ to foretell something; to prophesy.]

preface [literally, ‘utter before;’ an introductory or preliminary statement to a speech or writing.]

prelude [literally, ‘play before;’ an enactment that is prefatory to a longer, perhaps more important, performance.]

preposition

to prevent [literally, ‘to come before;’ to stop something from happening or someone from acting.]

prelapsarian (adjective) [literally, ‘before the slide or slip;’ pertaining to the time and condition of Adam and Eve before they fell by disobedience of God’s command.]

preposition (noun) [literally, ‘putting before;’ a word that establishes a relationship between a word in a basic clause and another word or words (the object of the preposition): the preposition and its object are called a prepositional phrase.]

pro- [from Greek]

(preposition)

before (in time or in space)

proboscis

to prognosticate

program [literally, ‘writing before;’ a listing of a series of events, speeches, studies, or deeds which usually are scheduled for public presentation.]

prologue [literally, ‘speech before;’ an introductory speech (to a play) or chapter (to a book); preface.]

to prophesy [literally, ‘to assert before;’ to predict the future, usually under the guidance of a god.]

proscenium [literally, ‘before the tent;’ the section of a contemporary theater between the curtain and the orchestra.]

proboscis (noun) [literally, ‘before the feed (fodder);’ a snout (sometimes long and flexible, like the trunk of an elephant); a nose.]

to prognosticate (verb) [literally, ‘to recognize before;’ to predict the future;.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

cap(i)t- [cip(it)-] [from Latin]

(noun)

head

capital [literally, ‘headlike;’ the governmental seat or headquarters of a geopolitical entity; wealth, especially money or property used to produce more money and property.]

capitellum [literally, ‘little head;’ the knob at the lower end of the humerus that interlocks with the radius.]

captain [literally, ‘head person;’ the commander of a vessel, such as a starship, or of a formally organized group of persons.]

to decapitate

occipital

sinciput [literally, ‘half the head;’ the upper half of the cranium; the forehead.]

to decapitate (verb) [literally, ‘to take the head down from;’ to behead.]

occipital (adjective) [literally, ‘against the head;’ pertaining to the back part of the head or skull.]

cephal- [from Greek]

(noun)

head

acephalous [literally, ‘headless.’]

brachycephalic [literally, ‘short-headed;’ having a short, broad head.]

cephalopod

encephalitis [literally, ‘inflammation in the head;’ inflammation of the brain.]

encephalogram

hydrocephalic [literally, ‘water headed;’ congenital condition characterized by an abnormal accumulation of fluid in the cerebral ventricles that destroys much of the neural tissue.]

cephalopod (noun) [literally, ‘head foot;’ a mollusk of the class Cephalopoda, such as the octopus, characterized by a large head and prehensile tentacles,]

encephalogram (noun) [literally, ‘writing of the head;’ an x-ray image of the brain.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

post- [from Latin]

(preposition)

after (either in time or in space)

posterior [literally, ‘more after;’ later in time, space, or importance.]

posterity

posthumous [literally, ‘after (one is in) the ground;’ after one’s death.]

post meridiem (PM) [literally, ‘after midday.’]

postmortem [literally, ‘after death;’ forensic dissection and analysis of a dead body to determine the cause of death.]

to postpone

posterity (noun) [literally, ‘afterness;’ future humans; one’s own future descendants.]

to postpone (verb) [literally, ‘to put after;’ to put off to a later time; to delay.]

meta-/met- [from Greek]

(preposition)

after, with

[Note: This comes to mean ‘necessarily preliminary or propaedeutic to.’]

metabolism [literally, ‘throwing after;’ the interweaving of the physiochemical processes within an organism that are necessary to sustain life.]

metamorphosis [literally, ‘after shaping;’ transformation, perhaps caused by magic or by divine intervention.]

metaphor

metaphysical [literally, ‘pertaining to the things after the natural things;’ pertaining to the philosophy that studies the nature of the whole or the whole of nature; pertaining to the science that studies the preconditions for a kind of knowledge, such as the metaphysics of morals.]

metempsychosis [literally, ‘being ensouled after(ward);’ the transmigration of souls at death from one being into another.]

method

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

method (noun) [literally, ‘way after;’ a systematic procedure for accomplishing a goal.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

anim- [from Latin]

(noun)

soul

to animadvert

animal [literally, ‘ensouled thing;’ a member of the biological kingdom of Animalia possessing the capacity for locomotion and a fixed bodily structure.]

animation [literally, ‘acting with soul;’ vivacity and spiritedness.]

animism

animosity [literally, ‘fullness of soul;’ deep hatred.]

magnanimous [literally, ‘big-souled;’ having and showing a generous spirit toward others.]

to animadvert (verb) [literally, ‘to turn one’s soul toward;’ to express strong disapproval or harsh censure of someone.]

animism (noun) [literally, ‘soulism;’ the belief that everything in the world possesses a soul and is alive.]

psych- [from Greek]

(noun)

soul

metempsychosis [literally, ‘being ensouled after(ward);’ the transmigration of souls at death from one being into another.]

psychiatry

psychoanalysis [literally, ‘loosening up the soul;’ the method of psychic treatment or therapy formulated by Sigmund Freud.]

psychology

psychosis [literally, ‘soul condition;’ severe mental dysfunction.]

psychosomatic [literally, ‘soul-bodily;’ relating to an illness with physical or bodily symptoms but with a mental or psychological cause; psychogenic.]

psychiatry (noun) [literally, ‘soul healing;’ the medically based science of mental functioning.]

psychology (noun) [literally, ‘speech about the soul;’ the non-medical science of mental functioning.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

per- [from Latin]

(preposition)

through

[Note: As a prefix, this also means ‘thorough(ly).’]

to percolate [literally, ‘to strain through or thoroughly;’ to pass a substance through small holes; to bubble with activity.]

perfection [literally, ‘making thoroughly;’ completeness in every way.]

to permit

to persecute

perspective [literally, ‘of a look through;’ a view or point of view.]

perverted

[literally, ‘thoroughly turned;’ deviating from what is considered normal or proper.]

to permit (verb) [literally, ‘to send through;’ to allow.]

to persecute (verb) [literally, ‘to follow thoroughly;’ to mistreat a person or group of persons doggedly and persistently, particularly on account of the person or group’s religion, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. ]

dia-/di- [from Greek]

(preposition)

through, on-account-of

diagnosis [literally, ‘recognizing through;’ the identification of the nature of a patient’s disease by means of an examination of the patient’s symptoms; any evaluation of the condition of anything.]

diagram [literally, ‘a thing written through;’ an illustrative or explanatory sketch or drawing.]

dialogue

dialysis [literally, ‘loosening through;’ the separation of smaller molecules from larger molecules or of dissolved substances from colloidal particles in a solution by selective diffusion through a semipermeable membrane.]

diameter

diocese [literally, ‘housekeeping through;’ the group of churches and parishioners under the administrative control of a bishop.]

dialogue (noun) [literally, ‘speaking through;’ actual conversation or conversation imitated in literature.]

diameter (noun) [literally, ‘a measure through;’ a line segment that passes through the center of a circle and terminates at its circumference.]