» Latin (ancient)

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 42 [vers-/vert-, trop-]

Doc Z — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 06:41:13 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

vers-/vert- [from Latin]

(verb)

to turn

conversion [literally, ‘turning together with;’ adopting of a new belief, especially a religion.]

to reverse [literally, ‘to turn back;’ to turn backward.]

versatile

vertebra [literally, ‘turning point;’ one of the bones that form the spinal column.]

vertex

vertigo [literally, ‘turning around;’ feeling of dizziness.]

versatile (adjective) [literally, ‘able to turn;’ able to do many things well.]

vertex (noun) [literally, ‘turning post;’ highest point; point of intersection of the sides of an angle.]

(base)

trop- [from Greek]

(verb)

to turn

entropy

heliotropic [literally, ‘turning to the sun;’ growth of an organism in the direction of the sun.]

trope

trophy [literally, ‘(over)turning;’ prize for victory.]

tropism [literally, ‘turningness;’ the turning of an organism away from an outside stimulus, such as heat or light.]

troposphere [literally, ‘turning sphere;’ the lowest region of the earth’s atmosphere.]

entropy (noun) [literally, ‘turning in;’ tendency for all matter and energy in the universe to move toward a state of inert uniformity.]

trope (noun) [literally, ‘turn (of speech);’ figurative speech; figure of speech.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 40 [pon-/pos-]

Doc Z — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 06:26:17 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

pon-/pos- [from Latin]

(verb)

to put

apposition

to compose [literally, ‘to put together;’ to combine parts into a whole.]

to oppose [literally, ‘to put against;’ to fight or argue against someone or something.]

to posit

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

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.]

apposition (noun) [literally, ‘putting toward or near;’ a phrase that explains an adjoining noun.]

to posit [literally, ‘to put (down);’ to assume or postulate an assertion.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 39 [-ity/-ety/-ty]

Doc Z — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 05:26:40 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(suffix)

-ity/-ety/-ty [from Latin]

(suffix)

-ness/-ship

audacity [literally, ‘daringness;’ boldness.]

community [literally, ‘commonness;’ a group of humans living in the same territory or having common interests.]

falsity [literally, ‘falseness.’]

gravity

sanity [literally, ‘soundness;’ soundness of mind.]

society

gravity (noun) [literally, ‘heaviness;’ seriousness; the natural force of attraction between two large heavenly bodies.]

society (noun) [literally, ‘comradeship;’ the group of humans joined by a distinct, common culture or regime.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 38 [spir-]

Doc Z — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 05:15:29 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

spir- [from Latin]

(verb/noun)

to breathe/

breath, spirit

[Note; In combination, after the letter ‘x,’ the ‘s’ in ‘spir-‘drops out, leaving ‘-xpir-.’]

to conspire

expiration

inspiration [literally, ‘breathing into;’ drawing in air; stimulating the mind or imagination, sometimes by divine prompting.]

perspiration [literally, ‘breathing through;’ excretion of saline bodily fluid through the pores.]

respiration [literally, ‘breathing again;’ breathing in and out.]

spirit [literally, ‘breath or spirit;’ incorporeal force or being.]

to conspire (verb) [literally, ‘to breathe together;’ to engage in a clandestine plot involving illegal activity.]

expiration (noun) [literally, ‘breathing out;’ coming to the end of a prescribed term; exhaling; dying.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 36 [terr-/ge(o)-]

Doc Z — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 04:49:39 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

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.]

(base)

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.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 35 [-or]

Doc Z — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 11:33:11 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(suffix)

-or [from Latin]

(suffix)

one who/that which

[Note: The feminine form of this suffix is –rix, which today is used primarily in legal documents, e. g., executrix.]

actor [literally, ‘one who acts;’ one who acts for oneself or as representative for another; a theater performer or player.]

aggressor

inhibitor [literally, ‘one who has something in;’ a person who or substance that holds someone or something back.]

motor [literally, ‘that which moves;’ a machine or part of a machine that produces motion, such as an automobile engine.]

orator [literally, ‘one who orates;’ a public speaker.]

tractor

aggressor (noun) [literally, ‘one who steps toward;’ one who engages in hostile actions against others.]

tractor (noun) [literally, ‘that which drags or draws;’ a motorized vehicle designed to perform arduous tasks, especially pulling heavy objects.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 34 [scrib-, script-/graph-, gram-]

Doc Z — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 13:43:23 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

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.]

(base)

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.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 33 [nov-/ne(o)-]

Doc Z — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 06:01:00 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

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.]

(base)

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.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 32 [mit(t)-mis(s)-]

Doc Z — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 11:45:16 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(base)

mit(t)-/mis(s)- [from Latin]

(verb)

to send

to admit [literally, ‘to send toward;’ to allow someone entrance to a place or group.]

emission [literally, ‘sending out;’ the discharge of a substance.]

mission [literally, ‘a sending;’ an assignment, such as a combat operation, given to a person or group of persons.]

missive

to submit

to transmit [literally, ‘to send across;’ to have something conveyed from one place to another.]

missive (noun) [literally, ‘something sent;’ a letter.]

to submit (verb) [literally, ‘to send up from under;’ to surrender to the power of someone else; to present for consideration by another.]

Latin and Greek Roots of English Vocabulary: An Online Manual: Lesson 31 [super-/sur-/hyper-]

Doc Z — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 10:08:37 +0000

Root

Original Meaning/

Usage Notes

English Derivatives

Vocabulary

(prefix)

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.]

(prefix)

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.]