English Grammar: Affixes

Prefixes

A prefix modifies or auguments the core meaning.

前缀决定褒贬(dis/de)，语气加强，前后(pre/post)，重复等(re)，大小，多少，好坏(eu/mis/dis)。

A prefix is a group of letters (or an affix) that’s added to the beginning of a word. Prefixes modify the meaning of a word. They can make a word negative, show repetition, or indicate opinion. When you add a prefix to a word, you shouldn’t change the spelling of the original word or the prefix.

Common Prefixes

Prefix	Meaning	Examples
a-, an-	without, lack of, not	amoral, acellular, abyss, achromatic, anhydrous
ante-	before, earlier, in front of	antecedent, antedate, antemeridian, anterior
anti-	against, opposite of	anticlimax, antiaircraft, antiseptic, antibody
auto-	self, same	autopilot, autobiography, automobile, autofocus
circum-	around, about	circumvent, circumnavigate, circumscribe
co-	with, together	co-pilot, co-worker, co-exist, co-author
com-, con-	together, with	companion, commingle, contact, concentrate
contra-, contro-	against, opposite	contradict, contrast, contrary, controversy
de-	down, off, away from	devalue, deactivate, debug, degrade, deduce
dis-	not, apart, away	disappear, disagreeable, disbar, dissect
en-	put into, cover with	enclose, entangle, enslave, encase
ex-	out of, from, former	extract, exhale, excavate, ex-president
extra-	beyond, outside, more than	extracurricular, extramarital, extravagant
hetero-	different, other	heterosexual, heterodox, heterogeneous
homo-, homeo-	same, alike	homonym, homophone, homeostasis
hyper-	over, more, beyond	hyperactive, hypersensitive, hypercritical
il-, im-, in-, ir-	not, without	illegal, immoral, inconsiderate, irresponsible
in-	in, into	insert, inspection, infiltrate
inter-	between, among	intersect, interstellar, intervene, interpenetrate
intra-, intro-	within, inside	intravenous, intragalactic, introvert
macro-	large, prominent	macroeconomics, macrostructure, macrocosm
micro-	very small	microscope, microcosm, microbe
mono-	one, single, alone	monocle, monologue, monogamy, monotony
non-	not, without	nonentity, nonaggressive, nonessential, nonfiction
omni-	all, every	omniscient, omnivorous, omniscient, omnidirectional
post-	after, behind	postmortem, posterior, postscript, postoperative
pre-, pro-	before, forward	precede, predict, project, prologue
re-	again	reelect, readmit, resubmit
sub-	under, lower	submarine, subsidiary, substandard
sym-, syn-	same time, together	symmetry, symposium, synchronize, synapse
tele-	from or over a distance	telecommunications, telemedicine, television, telephone
trans-	across, beyond, through	transmit, transaction, translation, transfer
tri-	three, every third	tricycle, trimester, triangle, triathlon
un-	not, lacking, opposite of	unfinished, unskilled, ungraceful, unfriendly
uni-	one, single	unicorn, unicellular, unicycle, unilateral
up-	to the top or north, higher/better	upbeat, updo, upgrade, upload, uphill, upstage, upscale, up-tempo
endo-	within, inner, absorbing, or containing	Endobiotic
exo-	“outside,” “outer,” “external,”	exocentric
ad-	加强	adept
ep/epi	on/upon

Suffixes

Suffixes often determine the part of speech of a word. 后缀决定词性。

A suffix is a letter or a group of letters attached to the end of a word to form a new word or to change the grammatical function (or part of speech) of the word.

From: A List of 26 Common Suffixes in English

Noun Suffixes:

Suffix	Meaning	Example
-acy	state or quality	privacy, fallacy, delicacy
-al	act or process of	refusal, recital, rebuttal
-ance, -ence	state or quality of	maintenance, eminence, assurance
-dom	place or state of being	freedom, kingdom, boredom
-er, -or	one who	trainer, protector, narrator
-ism	doctrine, belief	communism, narcissism, skepticism
-ist	one who	chemist, narcissist, plagiarist
-ity, -ty	quality of	inactivity, veracity, parity, serenity
-ment	condition of	argument, endorsement, punishment
-ness	state of being	heaviness, sadness, rudeness, testiness
-ship	position held	fellowship, ownership, kinship, internship
-sion, -tion	state of being	concession, transition, abbreviation

Verb Suffixes:

Suffix	Meaning	Example
-ate	become	regulate, eradicate, enunciate, repudiate
-en	become	enlighten, awaken, strengthen
-ify, -fy	make or become	terrify, satisfy, rectify, exemplify
-ize, -ise*	become	civilize, humanize, socialize, valorize

Adjective Suffixes:

Suffix	Meaning	Example
-able, -ible	capable of being	edible, presentable, abominable, credible
-al	pertaining to	regional, grammatical, emotional, coastal
-esque	reminiscent of,It’s simply added to the end of the name	picturesque, statuesque, burlesque
-ful	notable for	fanciful, resentful, woeful, doubtful
-ic, -ical	pertaining to	musical, mythic, domestic, chiastic
-ious, -ous	characterized by	nutritious, portentous, studious
-ish	having the quality of	fiendish, childish, snobbish
-ive	having the nature of	creative, punitive, divisive, decisive
-less	without	endless, ageless, lawless, effortless
-y	characterized by	sleazy, hasty, greasy, nerdy, smelly