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.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

phy-/phys- [from Greek]

(verb)

to grow

[Note: This gave rise to the ancient Greek words for plant (phyton) and for nature (physis).]

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

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

physician [literally, ‘one skilled in nature;’ a licensed medical practitioner.]

physics [literally, ‘skill in nature;’ the science of the nature and behavior of matter and energy.]

physiology

phytology

physiology (noun) [literally, ‘speech about growing or nature;’ the science of the functions and parts of biological organisms.]

phytology (noun) [literally, ‘speech about growing things;’ the science of plants, equivalent to botany.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

ex-/e- [from Latin]

(preposition)

out-of, on-the-basis-of

event [literally, ‘a coming out;’ a happening, sometimes one of significance; a final result or outcome.]

to exacerbate

excess

excursion [literally, ‘a running out;’ a short pleasure trip.]

to expect [literally, ‘to look out for;’ to await something that is probable or due.]

to expel [literally, ‘to push out;’ to drive out or force to leave.]

to exacerbate (verb) [literally, ‘to make bitter out-of;’ to make something worse than it already is.]

excess (noun) [literally, ‘gone out-of;’ an amount or behavior that goes beyond what is normal or sufficient or lawful or conventionally acceptable.]

ec-/ex- [from Greek]

(preposition)

out-of, on-the-basis-of

eccentric

ecclesiastical [literally, ‘pertaining to a calling out (and together);’ pertaining to the church.]

eclectic [literally, ‘selected out-of;’ composed of items selected out of a wide variety of sources.]

eclipse [literally, ‘leaving out;’ the partial or complete blotting out of one heavenly body by another.]

ecstasy [literally, ‘standing out-of;’ a state of intense blissful emotion that transcends reasoning and takes one out of oneself.]

exodus

eccentric (adjective) [literally, ‘out-of the center;’ deviating from the conventionally accepted standard.]

exodus (noun) [literally, ‘way out;’ a departure of a large number of persons as a coherent group.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

con-/com-/co- [from Latin]

(preposition)

with

[Note: As a prefix, this also means ‘together.’]

colloquial

concrescence [literally, ‘growing together;’ the conjoint growing of different parts of a biological organism.]

congregation [literally, ‘a flocking together;’ a group of persons assembled for a specific purpose, especially for religious worship.]

consensus

convention [literally, ‘a coming together;’ a formal meeting of an organization; an agreed upon usage or belief.]

to convert [literally, ‘to turn together with;’ to change something into something else; to convince someone to adopt a particular belief, especially a religion.]

colloquial (adjective) [literally, ‘pertaining to speaking together with (someone else);’ characteristic of spoken language or informal writing that is meant to imitate ordinary conversation.]

consensus (noun) [literally, ‘a sensing together;’ an agreement reached by a group either unanimously (consensus omnium) or by a majority (consensus gentium).]

syn-/sym-/syl-/sy-/sys- [from Greek]

(preposition)

with

[Note: As a prefix, this also means ‘together.’]

sympathy [literally, ‘suffering together with;’ sharing the feelings of someone else; compassion.]

symphony [literally, ‘sound together;’ a long musical composition in three or more movements for a large orchestra.]

synergy [literally, ‘working together with;’ the interaction of two or more actors or forces so that their combined effect is bigger than the sum of their individual effects; cooperative interaction between groups.]

synonym [literally, ‘name together with;’ a word with the same, or almost the same, meaning as another word in the same language.]

syntax

synthesis

syntax (noun) [literally, ‘ordering together;’ the rules governing the combining of words into grammatically correct clauses and sentences; the rules of linguistic coordination.]

synthesis (noun) [literally, ‘a putting together;’ the combining of disparate elements or phenomena into an organized and integrated whole; compositing.] 

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes 

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

arch- [from Greek]

(noun)

rule, beginning

anarchy [literally, ‘without a rule or a ruler.’]

archaeology

archangel [literally, ‘ruling messenger;’ a high-ranking angel.]

archbishop [literally, ‘ruling overseer;’ a bishop of the highest rank, such as the head of an archdiocese or province.]

architect

oligarchy [literally, ‘rule by a few (usually the wealthy).’]

archaeology (noun) [literally, ‘speech about the beginning;’ the systematic study of material artifacts from the past.]

architect (noun) [literally, ‘ruling builder;’ one who plans and supervises the construction of buildings.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes 

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

   end(o)-/ent(o)-

     [from Greek]

(preposition)

            within

endocardium

endocrine

endemic [literally, within a people;’ prevalent in, or peculiar to, a particular locale or people.]

endodontics [literally, ‘skill at what is within the tooth;’ the branch of dentistry which treats diseases of the tooth’s root and dental pulp.]

endomorph [literally, ‘shape within;’ a human body type characterized by fleshiness and the prominence of the abdomen.]

entozoan [literally, ‘within a living thing;’ an animal that lives within another animal, usually as a parasite.]

endocardium (noun) [literally, ‘location within the heart;’ the thin membrane that lines the interior of the heart.]

endocrine (adjective) [literally, ‘judging or discriminating within;’ secreting internally; pertaining to the endocrine glands or their hormones.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

circum- [from Latin]

 (preposition)

around

circumference

circumlocution [literally, ‘spoken around;’ a roundabout way of saying something that could be said more directly and briefly; periphrasis.]

to circumnavigate [literally, ‘to sail around;’ to travel completely around something, such as the earth.]

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

circumspect [literally, ‘looking around;’ paying close attention to all circumstances and consequences; skillfully prudent.]

to circumvent

circumference (noun) [literally, ‘bearing around;’ the line which bounds and defines a circle; periphery.]

to circumvent (verb) [literally, ‘to come around;’ to go around or to bypass something (for the purpose of avoiding or evading it).]

peri- [from Greek]

(preposition)

around, about

perigee [literally, ‘around the earth;’ the point in the orbit of a satellite which is closest to the center of the earth or of any other body being orbited.]

perimeter [literally, ‘a measure around;’ the bounding line of a plane surface or figure.]

periodontal [literally, ‘around the tooth;’ relating to the area surrounding a tooth.]

peripeteia

periphrasis

periscope [literally, ‘looking around;’ an optical device for observing things from a position which is not in a direct line with the things to be observed.]

peripeteia (noun) [literally, ‘falling around;’ a sudden reversal of circumstances, especially in a work of literature.]

periphrasis (noun) [literally, ‘asserted around;’ a roundabout way of saying something that could be said more directly and briefly; circumlocution.]

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

loqu-/locut- [from Latin] 

(verb)

to speak/spoken

circumlocution

colloquial [literally, ‘pertaining to speaking together with (someone else);’ characteristic of spoken language or informal writing that is meant to imitate ordinary conversation.]

elocution [literally, ‘speaking out;’ the technique of speaking clearly and emphatically, especially in public.]

interlocutor [literally, ‘speaker between or among;’ one of the persons who engages in a conversation.]

loquacious [literally, ‘speech-full;’ talkative.]

soliloquy

circumlocution (noun) [literally, ‘spoken around;’ a roundabout way of saying something that could be said more directly and briefly; periphrasis.]

soliloquy (noun) [literally, ‘speaking alone;’ a speech spoken by a person in a drama when no one else is on stage.]

log-/-logy [from Greek]

(noun)

speech

apology

biology [literally, ‘speech about a lifetime;’ the study of living organisms as living and their life cycles.]

ecology

epilogue [literally, ‘speech after or added-on;’ a speech delivered after the conclusion of the action of a play or after the end of a literary work.]

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

theology [literally, ‘speech about a god; the formal study of the nature of gods, a god, or God; the formal study of religion.]

apology (noun) [literally, ‘speaking (oneself) away from;’ a statement asking for forgiveness; a public, legal defense speech.]

ecology (noun) [literally, ‘speech about the home;’ the study of the relationships between organisms, especially humans, and their environment.]