A prefix is a group of letters added to the front of a word. It changes the meaning.
Un- can mean not, so unhappy means not happy.
Re- can mean again, so rewrite means write again.
Cover the last column and guess the meaning from the prefix. Then check. The first fifty are the ones primary children use most. The later rows are useful for upper primary and beyond.
Common Prefixes (un-, re-, dis-, pre-, mis-, over-)
| No. | Prefix | Meaning | Example Word | Meaning of Example |
| 1 | un- | not / opposite of | unhappy | not happy |
| 2 | re- | again | rewrite | write again |
| 3 | dis- | not / opposite of | dislike | not like |
| 4 | pre- | before | preview | view before |
| 5 | mis- | wrongly / badly | misunderstand | understand wrongly |
| 6 | over- | too much | overeat | eat too much |
| 7 | under- | too little / below | undercook | cook too little |
| 8 | in- | not | incorrect | not correct |
| 9 | im- | not (before b, m, p) | impossible | not possible |
| 10 | il- | not (before l) | illegal | not legal |
| 11 | ir- | not (before r) | irregular | not regular |
| 12 | non- | not | nonstop | without stopping |
| 13 | anti- | against | antivirus | against virus |
| 14 | auto- | self | autograph | signature written by oneself |
| 15 | bi- | two | bicycle | vehicle with two wheels |
| 16 | tri- | three | triangle | shape with three sides |
| 17 | semi- | half | semicircle | half of a circle |
| 18 | multi- | many | multicoloured | having many colours |
| 19 | super- | above / better than | superstar | a very famous person |
| 20 | sub- | under / below | submarine | a ship that goes under water |
| 21 | trans- | across / through | transport | carry from one place to another |
| 22 | inter- | between | international | between different countries |
| 23 | co- | together / with | cooperate | work together |
| 24 | de- | remove / reverse | defrost | remove frost |
| 25 | en- | cause to / put into | enable | make able to do something |
| 26 | ex- | out / former | exit | go out |
| 27 | fore- | before / in front | forecast | tell what will happen before |
| 28 | mid- | middle | midnight | middle of the night |
| 29 | mini- | small | minibus | a small bus |
| 30 | mono- | one / single | monologue | a long speech by one person |
| 31 | poly- | many | polygon | a shape with many sides |
| 32 | post- | after | postpone | put off to a later time |
| 33 | pro- | forward / in favour of | progress | move forward |
| 34 | pseudo- | FALSE | pseudonym | a false name used by a writer |
| 35 | tele- | far / distant | telephone | a device to talk from far away |
| 36 | thermo- | heat | thermometer | an instrument to measure heat |
| 37 | ultra- | beyond / extremely | ultrasound | sound waves beyond normal range |
| 38 | uni- | one | uniform | clothing of the same style |
| 39 | up- | higher / better | upgrade | improve to a higher level |
| 40 | down- | lower / reduce | download | transfer data from the internet |
| 41 | out- | better than / outside | outrun | run faster than someone |
| 42 | self- | by oneself | self-control | control of oneself |
| 43 | neo- | new | neonate | a newborn baby |
| 44 | hyper- | over / too much | hyperactive | too active |
| 45 | hypo- | under / below normal | hypothermia | body temperature below normal |
| 46 | micro- | small | microscope | instrument to see very small things |
| 47 | macro- | large | macroeconomics | study of large-scale economy |
| 48 | mega- | large / million | megabyte | one million bytes |
| 49 | nano- | very small | nanosecond | one billionth of a second |
| 50 | a- | not / without | atypical | not typical |
| 51 | ab- | away from | absent | not present |
| 52 | ad- | to / toward | advance | move forward |
| 53 | ante- | before | antecedent | something that comes before |
| 54 | circum- | around | circumference | the distance around a circle |
| 55 | contra- | against | contradict | say the opposite |
| 56 | counter- | opposite | counterattack | an attack in response |
| 57 | demi- | half | demigod | half god |
| 58 | dia- | through / across | diameter | line passing through the centre |
| 59 | dys- | bad / difficult | dysfunction | not working properly |
| 60 | ecto- | outside | ectoplasm | outer layer of cell |
| 61 | endo- | inside | endoscope | instrument to see inside body |
| 62 | epi- | upon / above | epidemic | disease spreading over a wide area |
| 63 | eu- | good / well | euphoria | feeling of great happiness |
| 64 | extra- | beyond / outside | extraordinary | beyond ordinary |
| 65 | hetero- | different | heterosexual | attracted to the opposite sex |
| 66 | homo- | same | homosexual | attracted to the same sex |
| 67 | infra- | below | infrastructure | basic systems below the surface |
| 68 | intra- | within | intravenous | within the vein |
| 69 | iso- | equal | isosceles | having two equal sides |
| 70 | mal- | bad / badly | malfunction | function badly |
| 71 | mega- | large | megaphone | device to make voice louder |
| 72 | meta- | change / beyond | metamorphosis | change in form |
| 73 | milli- | thousandth | millimetre | one thousandth of a metre |
| 74 | omni- | all | omnivore | eats all kinds of food |
| 75 | pan- | all | pandemic | disease affecting all people |
| 76 | para- | beside / beyond | paragraph | section beside the main text |
| 77 | peri- | around | perimeter | distance around a shape |
| 78 | retro- | backward | retrospect | looking back |
| 79 | syn- | together | synonym | word with similar meaning |
| 80 | vice- | in place of | vice-president | person acting in place of president |
| 81 | a- | on / in | aboard | on board |
| 82 | be- | cause to be / thoroughly | befriend | make someone a friend |
| 83 | by- | secondary / near | bypass | a road that goes around |
| 84 | for- | completely / wrongly | forget | fail to remember |
| 85 | with- | against / back | withdraw | take back |
| 86 | ambi- | both | ambidextrous | able to use both hands equally |
| 87 | astro- | star | astronaut | person who travels to space |
| 88 | bio- | life | biology | study of living things |
| 89 | chrono- | time | chronological | arranged in time order |
| 90 | geo- | earth | geography | study of the earth |
| 91 | hydro- | water | hydroelectric | electricity from water |
| 92 | psycho- | mind | psychology | study of the mind |
| 93 | socio- | society | sociology | study of society |
| 94 | theo- | god | theology | study of religion |
| 95 | photo- | light | photograph | picture made with light |
| 96 | pyro- | fire | pyromaniac | person obsessed with fire |
| 97 | zoo- | animal | zoology | study of animals |
| 98 | aero- | air | aerobics | exercise using oxygen |
| 99 | cryo- | cold | cryogenic | relating to very low temperatures |
| 100 | petro- | rock / petroleum | petroleum | oil from rocks |
Practice Time
