Understanding New Words: Prefixes
English: Year 5 & 6 National Curriculum, topic 1.1.1
Understanding New Words: Prefixes
We can break down words into different parts to help us figure out new meanings of words. One way to understand the meaning of a word is to look at the prefixes.
Prefix
- A prefix is a word or group of letters at the start of the word which changes the meaning.
Examples
- In unhappy, 'un' is a prefix meaning 'not'.
- So unhappy means 'not happy'.
- In preschool, 'pre' is a prefix meaning 'before'.
- So preschool means 'before school'.
More examples
- In automobile, 'auto' is a prefix meaning 'self, own'.
- So automobile means 'a vehicle that moves by itself'.
- In bicycle, 'bi' is a prefix meaning 'two'.
- So bicycle means a cycle with 'two wheels'.
Test yourself on Understanding New Words: Prefixes
How can we call the group of letters 'mis' in the word 'misinterpret'?
What words use a prefix?
What word derived from 'hero' uses a prefix?