Understanding Prefixes and Suffixes to Boost Your Vocabulary

1. What are Prefixes and Suffixes?

• Prefixes are little parts added to the start of a word. For example, in the word unhappy, the un- means not.
• Suffixes are added to the end of a word. Like in joyful, the -ful means full of.

2. How They Help:

• Grow Your Vocabulary: When you know about prefixes and suffixes, you can make new words! For instance, if you know the word happy, you can also use unhappy (which means not happy) or happiness (the feeling of being happy).

• Understanding Reading: If you come across a word you don’t know, try breaking it apart. Knowing that dis- in disagree means not agreeing can really help you understand it better.

• Context Clues: Look at the parts of a word to guess its meaning. For example, the word careless shows us that someone is not being careful, thanks to the care- and -less.

3. Practice Examples:

• Make Sentences:
  • "He felt joyful at the party."
  • "She was unbelievable in her performance."

Learning about prefixes and suffixes can really help you with speaking, writing, listening, and reading. You’ll feel more confident as you use language!