Greek and Latin Roots
Sometimes you'll come across an unfamiliar word, you don't have a dictionary, and the context alone isn't quite enough to determine its meaning. You either skip the word and hope that the meaning becomes clear later, or you get frustrated. There is a third option. If you know some of the Greek and Latin roots, prefixes and suffixes, they can help you determine what the unfamiliar word might mean. They can also help you spell words.
Greek and Latin roots, prefixes and suffixes will added to this page regularly. Please check back frequently!
Prefixes
Ab- : away, from, not (abduct - to carry away, abnormal - not normal)
Anti- : against, opposite (antimatter - opposite of matter)
Bi- : two (bicycle - two wheels)
Circum- : around (circumscribe - draw a line around)
De- : away, down, negative (dehydrate - to lose water)
Dia- : through, between (diameter - straight line through the center)
Dys- : bad, badly (dyslexia - literally "bad words", a condition that impairs your ability to read)
En- : in, into (encode - to put into code)
Exo- : outside (exoskeleton - a framework or skeleton outside the body)
Hemi- : half (hemisphere - half of the globe)
Hyper- : over, above (hyperactive - overactive)
Hypo- : under (hypodermic - under the skin)
Il- : not (illegal - not legal)
Ir- : not (irrational - not rational)
Infra- : beneath (infrastructure - substructure or underlying foundation)
Iso- : equal (isometric - having equality of measure)
Magn- : great (magnificent - splendid)
Myri- : countless (myriad - an indefinitely great number)
Non- : not (nonfiction - real, not fiction or imagined)
Omni- : all (omnivorous - eats all sorts of food)
Pachy- : thick (pachyderm - thick skinned)
Peri- : around (periphery - boundary of a surface or area)
Post- : after (posthumous - published after the death of an author)
Pre- : before (prerequisite - required beforehand)
Re- : back, again (recapture - to capture again)
Semi- : half (semicircle - half of a circle)
Sub- : under (submarine - underwater vehicle)
Syn- : with, together (synchronize - to occur at the same time)
Tri- : three (triceratops - three-horned dinosaur)
Ultra- : beyond (ultrasonic - sound greater than human hearing)
Uni- : one (unicorn - one-horned horselike animal)
Suffixes
-able : able (respectable - able to be respected)
-ac or -iac : related to (cardiac - related to the heart)
-ad : group (myriad - an indefintely great number; triad - group of three)
-an or -ian : one who (artisan - one who works in art, a skilled craftsman)
-aneous : having the quality of (contemporaneous - happening in the same period of time)
-arium : place where (aquarium - a place where water plants or animals are kept)
-ate : to make or act (mandate - to make a command)
-cide : to kill (homicide - to kill a person)
-cule : small (molecule - a small particle)
-ion or -tion : state, quality, act (interaction - action on each other)
-ist : one who (florist - one who works with flowers)
-lexia : to read or words (dyslexia - condition that causes reading difficulties)
-logy or -ology : study (ornithology - the study of birds)
-ment : that which (impediment - that which impedes or obstructs)
-oid : resembling (android - resembling a man)
-oma : growth, tumor (carcinoma - a cancerous growth)
-orama : view (panorama - unlimited view in all directions)
-rix or -trix : feminine (executrix - female executor of a will)
-rrhea : to flow (diarrhea - uncontrolled flow of fecal material)
Roots
acro : high, extremity (acrophobia - normal fear of being in high places)
ambul : to walk (ambulatory - capable of walking)
angi : vessel, blood vessel (angiogram - an ex-ray of the blood vessels)
anima : spirit, life (animate - to fill with life)
aren : sand (arenaceous - sandy)
arthr : joint (arthritis - inflammation of the joints)
audi : to hear (audiology - science of hearing)
avi : bird (aviary - a large cage for keeping many birds)
bar : pressure, weight (barometer - intrument that measures atmospheric pressure)
bath : deep (bathysphere - spherical deep-diving chamber)
bio : life (biography - the story of one's life)
calli : beautiful (calligraphy - beautiful writing)
carn : flesh, meat (carnivorous - meat-eating)
caust, caut : to burn (cauterize - to burn with a hot iron or with fire)
cogn : to know (cognizant - to be aware of)
dactyl : finger (pterodactyl - prehistoric creature with finger-like digits in its wings)
deca, deka : ten (decade - 10 years)
dyn, dynam : power (thermodynamics - science involving heat and power or mechanical energy)
enigm : puzzle (enigmatic - perplexing, mysterious)
entom : insect (entomology - study of insects)
equ : horse (equine - of or pertaining to a horse)
erythr : red (erythrocyte - red corpuscles in the blood)
felic : happy (felicity - anything producing happiness)
flux : flow (influx - flowing in)
glac : ice (glacial - of or like ice or glaciers)
gon : angle, corner (pentagon - a shape having five angles and five sides)
gress : to step (regression - movement backward)
graph, gram : to write (autograph - person's signature; telegram - written message sent via telegraph)
grav : heavy, to weigh (gravity - weight, seriousness)
gyn : woman (gynecologist - doctor who specializes in women's health)
hem : blood (hematology - study of blood)
herb : grass (herbivore - an animal that only eats plants)
hydr : water (dehydrate - take water from)
iatr : doctor (podiatrist - doctor who specializes in feet)
juven : young (rejuvenate - to make feel or seem young again)
juxta : next (juxtapose - to put side by side)
lev : lightweight, to raise (levitate - to rise up or hover)
lingu : language (bilingual - or or in two languages)
lith : stone (lithograph - method of printing in which a stone or metal plate is used to transpose an image)
lumin : light (luminescent - exhibiting light)
mar : sea (mariner - a sailor)
mater, matr : mother (maternal - characteristic of a mother)
memor : remember (commemorate - to honor the memory or someone or something)
morph : form (amorphous - without form, shapeless)
naut : to sail (astronaut - one who sails or travels to the stars)
neur : nerve (neurology - study of the nervous system)
nutri : to nourish (malnutrition - inadequate nutrition)
odont : tooth (periodontal - occurring around a tooth)
ophthalm : eye (ophthalmologist - eye doctor)
ornith : bird (ornithology - study of birds)
pater, patr : father (paternal - characteristic of a father)
petr : rock (petroglyph - rock carving or painting)
phot, photo : light (photosynthesize - process by which plants make food using light)
pseud : false (pseudonym - fictitious or fake name, pen name)
pyr : fire (pyromanic - a person who loves to start fires)
quad, quadr : four (quadrilateral - shape with four sides)
rupt : to break (interrupt - to break in upon a person while he or she is speaking)
sanguin : blood (consanguinity - related by blood, rather than by marriage)
saur : lizard (dinosaur - prehistoric reptiles)
schiz : to split (schizophrenia - mental disorder characterized by split personality)
scrib, scribe, script : to write (scribble - meaningless writings or drawings)
tach : fast (tachycardia - abnormally fast heartbeat)
techn : art, skill (technician - someone skilled in a specific area)
tempor : time (temporary - for the time being)
tox : poison (toxemia - condition caused by poison in the blood)
ubiqu : everywhere (ubiquitous - seems to be everywhere at the same time)
veloc : speed (velocity - speed)
ver : true (veracity - truth)
vulp : fox (vulpine - of or like a fox)
xyl : wood (xylophone - wooden musical instrument)
zo : animal (zoology - study of animals)
Greek and Latin roots, prefixes and suffixes will added to this page regularly. Please check back frequently!
Prefixes
Ab- : away, from, not (abduct - to carry away, abnormal - not normal)
Anti- : against, opposite (antimatter - opposite of matter)
Bi- : two (bicycle - two wheels)
Circum- : around (circumscribe - draw a line around)
De- : away, down, negative (dehydrate - to lose water)
Dia- : through, between (diameter - straight line through the center)
Dys- : bad, badly (dyslexia - literally "bad words", a condition that impairs your ability to read)
En- : in, into (encode - to put into code)
Exo- : outside (exoskeleton - a framework or skeleton outside the body)
Hemi- : half (hemisphere - half of the globe)
Hyper- : over, above (hyperactive - overactive)
Hypo- : under (hypodermic - under the skin)
Il- : not (illegal - not legal)
Ir- : not (irrational - not rational)
Infra- : beneath (infrastructure - substructure or underlying foundation)
Iso- : equal (isometric - having equality of measure)
Magn- : great (magnificent - splendid)
Myri- : countless (myriad - an indefinitely great number)
Non- : not (nonfiction - real, not fiction or imagined)
Omni- : all (omnivorous - eats all sorts of food)
Pachy- : thick (pachyderm - thick skinned)
Peri- : around (periphery - boundary of a surface or area)
Post- : after (posthumous - published after the death of an author)
Pre- : before (prerequisite - required beforehand)
Re- : back, again (recapture - to capture again)
Semi- : half (semicircle - half of a circle)
Sub- : under (submarine - underwater vehicle)
Syn- : with, together (synchronize - to occur at the same time)
Tri- : three (triceratops - three-horned dinosaur)
Ultra- : beyond (ultrasonic - sound greater than human hearing)
Uni- : one (unicorn - one-horned horselike animal)
Suffixes
-able : able (respectable - able to be respected)
-ac or -iac : related to (cardiac - related to the heart)
-ad : group (myriad - an indefintely great number; triad - group of three)
-an or -ian : one who (artisan - one who works in art, a skilled craftsman)
-aneous : having the quality of (contemporaneous - happening in the same period of time)
-arium : place where (aquarium - a place where water plants or animals are kept)
-ate : to make or act (mandate - to make a command)
-cide : to kill (homicide - to kill a person)
-cule : small (molecule - a small particle)
-ion or -tion : state, quality, act (interaction - action on each other)
-ist : one who (florist - one who works with flowers)
-lexia : to read or words (dyslexia - condition that causes reading difficulties)
-logy or -ology : study (ornithology - the study of birds)
-ment : that which (impediment - that which impedes or obstructs)
-oid : resembling (android - resembling a man)
-oma : growth, tumor (carcinoma - a cancerous growth)
-orama : view (panorama - unlimited view in all directions)
-rix or -trix : feminine (executrix - female executor of a will)
-rrhea : to flow (diarrhea - uncontrolled flow of fecal material)
Roots
acro : high, extremity (acrophobia - normal fear of being in high places)
ambul : to walk (ambulatory - capable of walking)
angi : vessel, blood vessel (angiogram - an ex-ray of the blood vessels)
anima : spirit, life (animate - to fill with life)
aren : sand (arenaceous - sandy)
arthr : joint (arthritis - inflammation of the joints)
audi : to hear (audiology - science of hearing)
avi : bird (aviary - a large cage for keeping many birds)
bar : pressure, weight (barometer - intrument that measures atmospheric pressure)
bath : deep (bathysphere - spherical deep-diving chamber)
bio : life (biography - the story of one's life)
calli : beautiful (calligraphy - beautiful writing)
carn : flesh, meat (carnivorous - meat-eating)
caust, caut : to burn (cauterize - to burn with a hot iron or with fire)
cogn : to know (cognizant - to be aware of)
dactyl : finger (pterodactyl - prehistoric creature with finger-like digits in its wings)
deca, deka : ten (decade - 10 years)
dyn, dynam : power (thermodynamics - science involving heat and power or mechanical energy)
enigm : puzzle (enigmatic - perplexing, mysterious)
entom : insect (entomology - study of insects)
equ : horse (equine - of or pertaining to a horse)
erythr : red (erythrocyte - red corpuscles in the blood)
felic : happy (felicity - anything producing happiness)
flux : flow (influx - flowing in)
glac : ice (glacial - of or like ice or glaciers)
gon : angle, corner (pentagon - a shape having five angles and five sides)
gress : to step (regression - movement backward)
graph, gram : to write (autograph - person's signature; telegram - written message sent via telegraph)
grav : heavy, to weigh (gravity - weight, seriousness)
gyn : woman (gynecologist - doctor who specializes in women's health)
hem : blood (hematology - study of blood)
herb : grass (herbivore - an animal that only eats plants)
hydr : water (dehydrate - take water from)
iatr : doctor (podiatrist - doctor who specializes in feet)
juven : young (rejuvenate - to make feel or seem young again)
juxta : next (juxtapose - to put side by side)
lev : lightweight, to raise (levitate - to rise up or hover)
lingu : language (bilingual - or or in two languages)
lith : stone (lithograph - method of printing in which a stone or metal plate is used to transpose an image)
lumin : light (luminescent - exhibiting light)
mar : sea (mariner - a sailor)
mater, matr : mother (maternal - characteristic of a mother)
memor : remember (commemorate - to honor the memory or someone or something)
morph : form (amorphous - without form, shapeless)
naut : to sail (astronaut - one who sails or travels to the stars)
neur : nerve (neurology - study of the nervous system)
nutri : to nourish (malnutrition - inadequate nutrition)
odont : tooth (periodontal - occurring around a tooth)
ophthalm : eye (ophthalmologist - eye doctor)
ornith : bird (ornithology - study of birds)
pater, patr : father (paternal - characteristic of a father)
petr : rock (petroglyph - rock carving or painting)
phot, photo : light (photosynthesize - process by which plants make food using light)
pseud : false (pseudonym - fictitious or fake name, pen name)
pyr : fire (pyromanic - a person who loves to start fires)
quad, quadr : four (quadrilateral - shape with four sides)
rupt : to break (interrupt - to break in upon a person while he or she is speaking)
sanguin : blood (consanguinity - related by blood, rather than by marriage)
saur : lizard (dinosaur - prehistoric reptiles)
schiz : to split (schizophrenia - mental disorder characterized by split personality)
scrib, scribe, script : to write (scribble - meaningless writings or drawings)
tach : fast (tachycardia - abnormally fast heartbeat)
techn : art, skill (technician - someone skilled in a specific area)
tempor : time (temporary - for the time being)
tox : poison (toxemia - condition caused by poison in the blood)
ubiqu : everywhere (ubiquitous - seems to be everywhere at the same time)
veloc : speed (velocity - speed)
ver : true (veracity - truth)
vulp : fox (vulpine - of or like a fox)
xyl : wood (xylophone - wooden musical instrument)
zo : animal (zoology - study of animals)