Latin and Greek Roots
“It’s all Greek to me!”
Prefixes and suffixes
• A prefix is something that goes on the beginning of a word to change
its meaning.
• A suffix is something that goes on the end of a word to change its
meaning.
• Science likes to reuse the same prefixes and suffixes repeatedly.
• You can also find many of these parts in our everyday words.
Example:
• Hypothesis – Below a thesis
• Hypodermic – Below the skin
• Hypothermia – Below temperature
So what does the prefix hypo- mean?
Example:
• Biology – Study of life
• Geology – Study of Earth
• Myrmecology – Study of ants
• Astrology – Study of stars (NOT A SCIENCE)
So what does the suffix –ology mean?
Everyday usage
• Hypothermia – Below temperature (so “therm” must mean
“temperature”)
• A “thermos” is something used to keep a drink warm or cold
• “Thermite” is a substance that can be burned for lots of heat
Most roots are Greek and Latin
• We use (ancient) Greek and Latin because nobody speaks them
anymore.
• Because nobody speaks them they don’t change.
• Because they don’t change we can use them over long periods of
time and can agree on a single way to speak it.