Using prefixes

In a nutshell

A prefix is a letter or group of letters placed at the beginning of a word to create a new word with a different meaning. Prefixes are placed at the front of a 'root' word. In this summary, you will learn the meanings of common prefixes and how to use them.

Prefixes

Prefixes can be added to the beginning of a word to change its meaning. They can be made up of one letter or a group of letters.

'dis' and 'mis'

Both 'dis' and 'mis' have a negative meaning and create a negative word when added to the root word.

prefix	meaning	example prefix+root word
dis-	negative meaning	dishonour (dis+honour), disagree (dis+agree)
mis-	negative meaning	misbehave (mis+behave), miscalculate (mis+calculate)

'in', 'il', 'im', 'ir'

The prefix 'in' means 'not' and can sometimes change into 'il', 'im' or 'ir' based on the root word.

Prefix	Meaning	Example Prefix+root word
in-	not	inaccurate (in+accurate), invisible (in+visible)
il-		illogical (il+logical), illegal (il+legal)
im-		impossible (im+possible), impassable (im+passable)
ir-		irrelevant (ir+relevant), irrational (ir+rational)

'sub', 'super' and 'inter'

These prefixes are added to note location.

prefix	meaning	example prefix+root word
sub-	under	subtitle (sub+title), subtotal (sub+total)
super-	above, over	super (super+power), supermarket (super+market)
inter-	between, among	international (inter+national), interview (inter+view)

're', 'anti' and 'auto'

These prefixes have different meanings, they are explained in the table below.

prefix	meaning	example prefix+root word
re-	again, back	redo (re+do), replay (re+play)
anti-	not, against, opposite	antisocial (anti+social), antibiotic (anti-biotic)
auto-	self, own, automatic	autopilot (auto+pilot), autobiography (auto+biography)