Chapter IV

WORD ANALYSIS

To learn English words thoroughly we must spend some thought on the way in which they are made up, on the language from which they have been derived, and on the changes in meaning made by adding prefixes and suffixes. Three important influences in building the English have been the Anglo-Saxon, the Greek, and the Latin languages. The simplest words in the language are Anglo-Saxon. The following exercises illustrate how words have been multiplied by Anglo-Saxon prefixes and suffixes.

Exercise 46

Name as many words as you can that make use of each of the following prefixes. Give only such as are recognizable English words without the prefix.

a—aboardmis—misjudge

be—becalmun—unknown

fore—foretell up—uproot

Give the meaning of each of the prefixes used above.

What part of speech does each prefix make?

Exercise 47

Using the following Teutonic suffixes, form English words. Be careful that the root taken alone is an English word.

dom—kingdomness—goodness

hood—manhood ship—friendship

What does each suffix mean?

What part of speech does it make?

Exercise 48

As above, form words using the following suffixes:

en—darkenful—fearful

en—goldenly—smoothly

ish—sweetishlike—childlike

less—fearless some—lonesome

Define each suffix.

What part of speech does it make?

Exercise 49—Greek Roots

Below is given a list of common Greek roots with the English meaning of each. Form words using one or more of the roots for each word, and define the words you make. For instance, give the meaning of telephone, telegraph, and monarch.

Greek EnglishGreek English

phon—hearchron—time

tele—farcycl—circle

graph—writegeo—earth

scop—seepolit—government

micro—smallcra—rule

mono—onedemo—people

arch—chiefhydro—water

metr—measurepoly—many

baro—pressure, weight pluto—riches

How many names of modern inventions have you made?

Exercise 50

What words belonging to your vocabulary end in the following suffixes? Choose only such as have an English word for the root.

Adjective Suffixes

1. able, ible—able to be, fit to be Readable, fit to be read. 2. al, eal, ial—relating to, having to do with 3. ant, ent—being, inclined to 4. ate—having the quality of, inclined to 5. ic—like, relating to 6. ive—relating to, of the nature of, belonging to 7. ory, ary—relating to 8. ous—full of, abounding in

Verb Suffixes

1. ate—to make 2. fy, ify—to make 3. ise, ize—to make

Noun Suffixes

1. age—condition, act, collection of 2. ance, ancy, ence, ency—state of being 3. ary, ory—one who, place where, that which 4. ant, ent—one who 5. ist, ite—one who 6. ion, sion, tion—act of, state of being 7. ity, ty—quality of being 8. ment—that which, act or state of being 9. or, er, ar—one who 10. try—state of 11. tude, itude—condition of being 12. ure—condition of being, that which

Exercise 51

The following is a list of the more commonly used Latin prefixes:

1. a, ab—away from16. intro—toward the inside

2. ad—toward17. mono—one

3. ante—before18. non—not

4. anti—against19. ob—in the way of, against

5. bi—two, twice20. per—through

6. circum—around21. pre—before

7. con—together with, against 22. post—after

8. contra—against23. pro—before

9. de—from, apart from, down from 24. re—again, back

10. dis—apart, not25. semi—half, partly

11. dia—through26. se—away from

12. ex—out of27. sub—under, below

13. in, en—into28. super—above, more than

en—to cause to be29. trans—across

14. in, un—not30. uni—one

15. inter—between

Exercise 52

Analyze the following words, telling prefix, root, suffix, part of speech, and meaning:

businesspackagetruthfulnessunsuccessful

uselessanteroomworkmanlikeagreement

prefixmonotonenervousnessuniformity

beautifybreakagedisrespectful misguidance

semicircle pleasantperfectioncrystallize

kingshipsameness progressiveprecaution

incasesubwayundeniableimaginary

enrichdisowndispleasuresupernatural

pianistreadmitendurancemelodious

bicycleadjuster reactioninterlineal

Exercise 53

When the prefixes ad, con, and in are used to form English words, the final consonant of each is often changed to the initial consonant of the root to which it is joined.

Ad assumes the forms ab, ac, af, ag, al, an, ap, ar, as, at, assimilating the d with the first letter of the word to which it is prefixed; as,

ab-breviate al-literation ar-rest

ac-ceptal-lotas-sign

ac-cumulate an-nexas-sist

af-fectan-nounceat-tract

af-flictap-positionat-tribute

ag-gregateap-proveat-tune

Con assumes the forms col, cor, com, by assimilation; it takes the form com before p; and it drops the n before a vowel; as,

col-lateral com-mercial com-pose

col-lectcor-relateco-operate

com-mission cor-respondco-ordinate

In assumes the forms il, im, ir, by assimilation and takes the form of im before p.

il-lusion im-migrate ir-ruption im-port

Exercise 54—Peculiar Adjective Endings

The suffixes able and ible are sometimes troublesome because it is difficult to know which ending to write. As a rule, if the new word was made from another English word, the ending is able, as blamable. The words ending in ible are derived from the Latin, and, as a rule, the ending cannot easily be separated from the root and still leave the latter an English word. Examples are:

divisible intelligible digestible audible

visiblepermissibleflexibleincredible

possibleterriblehorribleindelible

The suffixes ant and ent must also be carefully noted. No rule can be given for using one rather than the other. Whenever in doubt, consult a dictionary. Note the following:

ant ent

importantindependent

pleasantconvalescent

triumphant competent

luxuriantconvenient

stagnantconfident

The endings eous and ious, where e and i are often confused, are illustrated in the following:

eous ious

hideousdelirious

miscellaneous impious

courteousstudious

The endings cious and tious are shown in the following:

cious tious

consciousfictitious

precioussuperstitious

deliciouscautious

graciousambitious

suspicious nutritious

The endings gious and geous are illustrated in the following:

gious geous

religious courageous

Exercise 55—Peculiar Noun and Verb Endings

Nouns in ance and ence:

ance ence

acceptanceintelligence

appearancereference

annoyancepatience

acquaintance negligence

remittancediligence

ignoranceresidence

Nouns in sion, cion, and tion:

sion cion tion

exclusion coercionacquisition

aversionsuspicion precaution

Verbs in ise, yze, and ize:

ise yze ize

adviseanalyzebaptize

supervise paralyze recognize

Verbs in ceed, sede, and cede:

ceed sede cede

exceedsupersede concede

proceed intercede

succeed precede

Exercise 56

What other words can you form from the following? Explain what prefixes or suffixes you use in each case and what part of speech you form.

successconsiderrealchange

pleasedoubtpublishattend

occurapplyregularsatisfy

emphasize industryoperateassess

secondbusypractice resist

expensedistribute organdefine

dependlocateworksense

attractinstalldesirepreside

effectvitalcountsign

Exercise 57

There are many words the meanings of which are easily confused. The spelling and the definitions of such must be mastered. Analysis in this exercise and in the one following does not require separation into prefix, root, and suffix, but it necessitates a careful study of the words, first, to note the difference in spelling; second, to consult a dictionary, if necessary, for the difference in meaning.

Define each word clearly.

Use each in a sentence to illustrate its meaning.

accept—exceptcommon—mutual

add—annexcomplementary—complimentary

advice—advisecontinual—continuous

affect—effectcontraction—abbreviation

after—afterwardcontradiction—denial

ascend—assentcurrant—current

assure—promisedefective—deficient

attain—obtaindeprecate—depreciate

benefit—advantageeffective—efficient

brief—conciseeligible—illegible

center—middleeminent—prominent

claim—maintainexpect—hope

combine—combination intelligent—intelligible

Exercise 58

As above, define each word carefully and use it in a sentence to illustrate its meaning.

healthful—healthyproficient—efficient

inventory—invoiceproscribe—prescribe

invite—invitationpurpose—propose

last—latestquiet—quite

later—latterrecommend—recommendation

liable—likely—aptrefer—allude

loose—loserepair—fix

need—wantrequirement—requisite—requisition

perspective—prospective respectfully—respectively

positive—definitescarcely—hardly

practicable—practicalstationary—stationery

precede—proceedtherefore—accordingly

principal—principle

500 SPELLING WORDS

Lesson 1

business losingsurprising height

receivelooselySaturdaydepth

believeacrossWednesdayeighth

whollywhetherexcellentdaily

obligeddescribeexerciseearnest

Lesson 2

attacheddecisionprobableseize

attackedbuyingusablesiege

gentlemenstudying salablefriend

althoughrelyingdesirable Messrs.

thoroughly occasionhonorablenickel

Lesson 3

disappointknewacquittalstopped

disappeardesignoccurrence referred

disapprove fortycompellingplanned

disagreefourthbeginningswimming

anxiouspurpose permittedsubmitted

Lesson 4

all right persuadeNorwegianvariety

alreadypursuedpossessionprairie

tonguepreparedaccumulateneighbor

separaterepaireddissatisfy soldier

crystalnecessary dissolveshoulder

Lesson 5

theirawkwardopportunity scheme

advisemucilagedevelopmentschedule

advicefamiliarstatisticsaccurately

laboratory peculiar accidentalefficient

untilsimilarcompetentSpaniard

Lesson 6

policypatientmerchandise conscious

roughancientmercantileprecious

diseasepartialscarcitysuspicion

balancefacialindebtedphysician

decease ambitious estimatecaution

Lesson 7

ascendnoticeablevengeance emergency

assentserviceableaddresscompliance

minutemanageablesalaryreference

concealexchangeable currencyapparel

immense advantageouswithholdtypical

Lesson 8

editionespeciallyappreciate imitate

additionpamphletessentialinitial

identifyillustrate eligibleofficial

illegalFebruarylegiblecurtain

nuisance punctualillegibleadjacent

Lesson 9

latercrystallize lieutenantlenient

latterneutralizeanthracitenaphtha

weighedconceitbituminousliquid

destroycatarrhrheumatismgauge

indelible colonelinfluential sieve

Lesson 10

dulyinterferedanalyzeattorneys

durabletransferred analysisspecialty

mutualreconcileparalyze sympathy

bargainaccidentalbananacampaign

misspell irregularmolassesmattress

Lesson 11

acheddesignatevicinityrecognize

socialavailableguardiantechnical

forfeitadequatelycelebrate hygiene

opposite subordinate porcelainangel

parallelsufficientpoulticeangle

Lesson 12

societyassociaterumoredremittance

sirloindefinitelycourtesyremuneration

laborersphericalobstinacy restaurant

visitorcommercialfinancialgovernment

souvenir permissible sapphireacquaintance

Lesson 13

quiteappropriateconvenientknowledge

leastdistinguish exaggerateprincipal, a

written mysteriousconfidential stationary, a

amongappearanceendeavoringjudgment

psalmconferenceimmediatelyimplement

Lesson 14

assuregreatlyembarrassment auxiliary

expectgratefulorganizationconciliate

promptdeserveadvertisement principle, n

eliminatebureauassessmentstationery, n

illuminate deficient accommodateparenthesis

Lesson 15

couponindispensable measureproprietor

lengthinnumerablecondemntransient

vehicleinvestigatesecurity persistent

customerincandescentlinimentsignature

costumer effervescentmosquitomischievous

Lesson 16

canalcompany'srepetitionsulphur

channel real estate abbreviated benefited

liquidequivalentunabridgedunanimous

recentassignmentassuranceitemize

troughextravagantpneumaticcalcimine

Lesson 17

precedefreightauthorityleisure

proceedachievemortgageneuralgia

procession betweenspecimendyspepsia

precisionimagine solicitorsubstantial

extinguish autumncoöperates passenger

Lesson 18

merelymechanicalpreliminaryomitted

cashierpermanentmiscellaneous omission

urgentprominentsubscriptioncommittee

hesitateprecaution incrediblecommission

anchored intervalanticipationprecisely

Lesson 19

specifypreparationathleticsdeceit

equitycoincidenceexcursionreceipt

accrueirresolutesuggestion obstacle

concrete vaccination courageouspromissory

summaryglycerineconcessioncompulsory

Lesson 20

deficitscepticalanniversary rhythm

mansionconsciencepresumptionrhubarb

mentioninterruptionguaranteedfatigue

reckoned approximately prejudicesynopsis

licenseavoirdupoisprivilegeemphatic

Lesson 21

scholarElkhartindustriouscollision

scissorsMemphishideousdelusion

careerNiagaraartificialoxygen

sincereRaleigh cantaloupemartyr

chiffonier Oregonunscrupulous apology

Lesson 22

receiptCincinnatisovereignchemical

welfareDes Moines committeefrontier

feigned Decaturingredients fulfilled

chordDubuquecounterfeitfacsimile

scytheAlleghanyresponsibleidentical

Lesson 23

exceedPaducahforeignCheyenne

succeedEau Claire solemnitymetallic

secedePeoriaassassinate nauseated

immigrant Savannahpneumoniainvariably

emigrantManiladiphtheriainjurious

Lesson 24

adoptionMinneapolisfraudulentmahogany

scientificIndianapolis negligencecorduroy

guidanceSyracusediligenceSchenectady

syllableMilwaukeeridiculousduplicate

Fort Wayne Valparaisocomparative reënforce

Lesson 25

DuluthMassachusettspreferable periodical

MissouriConnecticutpreferredinsertion

Wisconsin enthusiasticpublicityexcursion

luxurious acknowledgment prevailingplateau

twelfthprofessionaldamageabletragedy