{"id":580156,"date":"2023-09-13T19:11:28","date_gmt":"2023-09-13T17:11:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scribbr.nl\/?p=580156"},"modified":"2023-09-25T12:15:13","modified_gmt":"2023-09-25T10:15:13","slug":"root-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scribbr.com\/language-rules\/root-words\/","title":{"rendered":"Root Words | Definition, List & Examples"},"content":{"rendered":"

A root word <\/strong>is the most basic form of a word that cannot be further divided into meaningful segments. Root words are used to form new words by adding letters at the beginning (i.e., a prefix) and\/or the end (i.e., a suffix).<\/p>\n

For example, the word \u201cunfaithful\u201d is made up of these different parts:<\/p>\n

\"root<\/p>\n

prefix\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 root word \u00a0 \u00a0 suffix<\/p>\n

By adding a suffix and\/or a prefix to a root word like \u201cfaith,\u201d we can make other words such as \u201cfaithful,\u201d \u201cfaithfully,\u201d \u201cunfaithful,\u201d and \u201cunfaithfully.<\/em>\u201d These words are linked both in terms of spelling and meaning and are called a word family<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What are root words?<\/h2>\n

A root word is the fundamental unit of a word. A root word has nothing added at the beginning or the end. While some root words are standalone words in English, others need a prefix (like \u201canti-\u201d or \u201cun-\u201d) and\/or a suffix (like \u201c-able\u201d or \u201c-ist\u201d) to create a meaningful word.<\/p>\n

For example, \u201ccede\u201d is a root word for other words like \u201crecede\u201d or \u201cprecedent,\u201d but it is also a word on its own (meaning \u201cto give up\u201d). On the other hand, the root word \u201cstruct\u201d does not constitute an understandable word in itself and other letters need to be added for it to make sense (e.g, \u201cinstructor,\u201d \u201cdestruction,\u201d \u201cstructural\u201d).<\/p>\n

Many words are created from Latin or Greek root words and usually cannot function as standalone words in English. For example, \u201cchrono\u201d comes from Greek and is the root of words like \u201cchronology,\u201d \u201csynchronize,\u201d and \u201cchronic,\u201d but it\u2019s not a separate word in English.<\/p>\n

Learning about root words can help you work out the meaning of new or longer words. When you know how to decode unknown words by identifying their root words and affixes<\/strong> (i.e., the prefix or suffix attached to them), you can navigate more complex or specialized texts. For example, many root words derived from Latin and Greek are common in math and science terminology, like \u201ccenti\u201d (\u201chundred\u201d) or \u201cgeo\u201d (\u201cearth\u201d).<\/p>\n

Note<\/figcaption>Affixes are short words that are added to root words to change their meaning. Affixes cannot be used independently.<\/p>\n