UNITI PREFIXES
headers.Some words will not be literal reversalsof the base word. Ask students if
Mistake
they've thought about how disease
can literally mean "the opposite of" ease?
and mischiefclearly have negative meanings but are not really the opposite of the
basewords take and chief.Point out the double s in the commonly misspelled word
misspelland ask students why there must be two. (One goeswith the prefix and one
with the baseword.)
disinsincere
informal
inFrequent
inhuman
inexpensive
insane
uneasy
unaware
unknown
undress
unfasten
untidy
dishonest
disbeliet
disorder
disconnect
disease
disrespect
discourage
misspell
misfortune
mistake
misleading
mischiel
Extend
\
Students should go onword hunts in familiar reading material to locate as many words
as they can with thesesameprefixes. They may find words Iike inside and injectwhere
the prefix irz-suggests"into" rather than "not." fust have them add thesein another column for now (they will study them in the next sort). There will also be some "exceptions"; that is, words such as uncle and reachthat do not have identifiable prefixes
becausethere is no baseword or root left when the prefix is removed. Theseare known
, asfalseprefixes.
Additionol
Words.
un- unattached,unbroken,unarmed,unaided,unbearable,
uncommon,Ltnuncomfortable,
conscious,unexpected,
unfortunate,unfriendly, unglued,ungrateful,unheated,unIuclcy, unpopular, unraael, unreasonable,unsuccessful,untangle, untouched,
unplanned,
unworthy
inconaenient,
in- inability, inaccurate,inadequate,
inaudible,incapable,inconsiderate,
incredible,
incurable,indigestion,indirect,infficient, inexperienced,
inflexible
dis- disadoantage,
disnppoint,disapprooe,
discord,
disarm,disaster,
discard,discontinue,
disdiscount,discharge,
disfigure,disgrace,
distrust,disinfect,disjointed,dislocated,
moLtnt,disown,disproae,
disqualifu,distaste,distract,distress
misconduct,misfit, misgiaings,misprint, misstep,mistrusted,misused,
mis- misbehaae,
misunderstood
soRT2
qOST-,
(PRE-,
PREFTXES
FORE-,
AFTER-I
Demonstrate,Sort,and Reflect
I,
(Seepage 14.)You can introduce this sort in a manner similar to Sort 1, but students can
probably sort by prefixes without much introduction. Pre-andfore- both mean "before"
whereas post- and after- both mean "after." Spend time discussing with students the
meanings of the prgfixes and words. The word prefix offersan excellentopportunity for
thinking explicitly about what this term means: literally, "to fix before." The pre- in
but talk about the baseword and
prepositionis pronounced differently (asit is in preface)
how a preposition is a part of speechthat comesbefore a position as in "up the hill" or
1.0
UNITI PREFIXES
"under the covers." Compare and contrast preseason/postseason,
forethought/nfterthought,
andforeword/afterword.
The latter word pair may be illustrated by showing the students._-.
a book that has a foreword and an afterword. A foreword is usuallv written bv someone
other than the author. If the word prefacedoes not come up in this discussion,you may
chooseto mention it: It literally means "to speakbefore" and, in contrast to a foreword,
is usually written bv the author.
Pre-
fore-
post-
prepare
predict
preface
prehistoric
precede
pretix
preseason
preposition
prewar
foretell
foreman
toreword
forelathers
foresight
forethought
postPone
posrwar
postseason
postdate
posttest
afternoon
afterword
afterthought
attertaste
Additiansl
Words.
pre-precedent,
predate,predetermine,
preexisting,prejudice,preliminary,premier,premium,premonition,
preoccupied,
preaentatiae,
preaious
fore- forecourt,forrtnger, foregone,foreground,forehand,foreknowledge,
foreordained,
forepaw,forerunner,foreshndow,
forewarning
post- posthumous,
postscript,
postcalonial,
postdated,
postmortem,
posterior,
postmodern,
postgraduate
\-after- afterlife,aftermath,aftereffects,
afterglow,aftershocks,
afterworld
soRT3
PREFTXES
(RE-,EX-,'N-, DE-)
Demonstrate,Sort,and Reflect
(Seepage 15.) Introduce this sort in a manner similar to Sort 1 but be aware that many of
these words do not have a base that stands alone. Begin the discussion with words that
have a base word that is clearly affected by the prefix and can be interpreted literally.
Replay means to "play again" or "playback." Some words cannot be interpreted so literally but should be words that are familiar to the students. For example, they should be
able to see how inflate and interior are related to "ittto" even though the base words are
unclear in meaning. Re- can mean either "agait1" or "back," er- means "a1tt of" or "bey orrd," de- means "to take aw ay," and in- is revisited here in words where it means " into"
or "inside" as in inflate.
nreplay
reappear
reclaim
reconsider
reruns
research
reaction
inflate
interior
inhabit
inmate
install
inhale
deexhale
exile
explore
excesS
exhaust
exterior
deflate
defrost
deprive
decrease
delete