List of Most Commonly Used Prefixes and Suffixes With Their Meanings and Examples

When you come across unfamiliar words without context, breaking those words into their parts can help you determine their meaning.

A good knowledge of prefixes and suffixes is essential to building an effective vocabulary. The more familiar you are with these fundamental word parts, the easier it will be to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words.

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There are dozens of prefixes and suffixes in the English language. Learning prefixes and suffixes in another language may seem like a daunting task, but the job may be easier than you think.

PREFIXES

Prefixes are syllables attached to the beginning of words to change or add to the meaning of the root word in some way. For example, the word prefix itself uses the prefix pre-, meaning before.

The following table lists the most common English language prefixes, their meanings, and examples of words with each prefix.

S.No.	Prefix	Meaning	Examples
1	a-, an-	not, without	atypical, anarchy, amorphous
2	ab-, abs-	from, away, off	abnormal, abduct, abscond
3	ante-	prior to, in front of, before	antedate, antecedent, antebellum
4	ant-, anti-	opposite, opposing, against	antidote, antagonist, antipathy
5	bi-	two, twice	bisect, bilateral, bicameral
6	circum-	around, about, on all sides	circumference, circumnavigate, circumspect
7	co-, com-, con-	with, together, jointly	cooperate, community, consensus
8	contra-	against, contrary, contrasting	contradict, contraindication
9	counter-	contrary, opposite or opposing; complementary	counterclockwise, countermeasure, counterpart
10	de-	do the opposite or reverse of; remove from, reduce	deactivate, dethrone, detract
11	dis-	away from, apart, reversal, not	disperse, dismiss, disinterested
12	duo-	two	duo, duet, duality
13	ex-	out, out of, away from	expel, exclaim, exorbitant
14	in- (also il-, im- ir-)	in, into, within	induct, impart, inculcate
15	in- (also il-, im-, ir-)	not	invariable, incessant, illicit, inept, impervious
16	inter-	between, among, within	intervene, interact, intermittent
17	intra-	within, during	intramural, intravenous
18	intro-	in, into, within	introvert, introduction
19	mal-	bad, abnormal, evil, wrong	malfunction, malpractice, malign
20	mis-	bad, wrong, ill; opposite or lack of	misspell, miscreant, misanthrope
21	mono-	one, single, alone	monologue, monogamy, monocle
22	multi-	many, multiple	multiple, multimillionaire, multifarious
23	neo-	new, recent, a new form of	neologism, neonatal, neophyte
24	non-	not	nonconformist, nonentity, nonchalant
25	over-	exceeding, surpassing, excessive	overabundance, overstimulate
26	poly-	many, much	polytechnic, polyglot
27	post-	after, subsequent, later (than), behind	postpone, postpartum, postoperative
28	pre-	before	precaution, precede, presage
29	pro-	(a) earlier, before, prior to; in front of (b) for, supporting, in behalf of (c) forward, projecting	proceed, proclivity, profess
30	pseudo-	false, fake	pseudonym, pseudoscience
31	re-	back, again	recall, reconcile, rescind
32	semi-	half, partly, incomplete	semiannual, semiconscious
33	sub-	under, beneath, below	subconscious, subdue, subjugate
34	super-	above, over, exceeding	superhero, superficial, supercilious
35	trans-	across, beyond, through	transmit, translate, translucent
36	tri-	three, thrice	triangle, tricycle, triumvirate
37	un-	not	unable, uninterested, unorthodox
38	uni-	one	unite, uniform, unilateral

SUFFIXES

Suffixes are syllables added to the end of words to change or add to their meaning. They often change a word’s part of speech, thereby also changing how the word functions in a sentence. Suffixes tell you whether a word is a person, place, or thing (a noun); an action or state of being (a verb); or a modifier, which is a word that describes (an adjective or adverb).

The following table lists the most common English language suffixes, their meanings, and examples of words with each suffix.

Noun Endings
S.No.	Suffix	Meaning	Examples
1	-age	(a) action or process (b) house or place of (c) state, rank	drainage, orphanage, marriage
2	-al	action or process	rehearsal, disposal, reversal
3	-an, -ian	of or relating to; a person specializing in	guardian, pediatrician, historian
4	-ance,-ence	action or process; state of	adolescence, benevolence, renaissance
5	-ancy, -ency	quality or state	agency, vacancy, latency
6	-ant, -ent	one that performs, promotes, or causes an action; being in a specified state or condition	disinfectant, dissident, miscreant
7	-ary	thing belonging to or connected with	adversary, dignitary, library
8	-cide	killer, killing	suicide, pesticide, homicide
9	-cy	action or practice; state or quality of	democracy, legitimacy, supremacy
10	-er, -or	one that is, does, or performs	builder, foreigner, sensor
11	-ion, -tion	act or process; state or condition	attraction, persecution, denunciation
12	-ism	act, practice, or process; state or doctrine of	criticism, anachronism, imperialism
13	-ist	one who (performs, makes, produces, believes, etc.)	anarchist, feminist, imperialist
14	-ity	quality, state, or degree	clarity, amity, veracity
15	-ment	action or process; result, object, means, or agent of an action or process	entertainment, embankment, amazement
16	-ness	state, condition, quality or degree	happiness, readiness, goodness
17	-ology	doctrine, theory, or science; oral or written expression	biology, theology, eulogy
18	-or	condition, activity	candor, valor, succor
19	-sis	process or action	diagnosis, dialysis, metamorphosis
20	-ure	act or process; office or function	exposure, legislature, censure
21	-y	state, condition, quality; activity or place of business	laundry, empathy, anarchy
Adjective Endings
S.No.	Suffix	Meaning	Examples
1	-able, -ible	capable or worthy of; tending or liable to	flammable, culpable, inscrutable
2	-al, -ial, -ical	having the quality of; of, relating to, or characterized by	educational, peripheral, ephemeral
3	-an, -ian	one who is or does; related to, characteristic of	human, American, agrarian
4	-ant, -ent	performing (a specific action) or being (in a specified condition)	important, incessant, preeminent
5	-ful	full of; having the qualities of; tending or liable to	helpful, peaceful, wistful
6	-ic	pertaining or relating to; having the quality of	fantastic, chronic, archaic
7	-ile	tending to or capable of	fragile, futile, servile
8	-ish	having the quality of	Swedish, bookish, squeamish
9	-ive	performing or tending towards (an action); having the nature of	sensitive, cooperative, pensive
10	-less	without, lacking; unable to act or be acted on (in a specified way)	endless, fearless, listless
11	-ous, -ose	full of, having the qualities of, relating to	adventurous, glorious, egregious
12	-y	characterized by, full of; tending or inclined to	sleepy, cursory, desultory
Verb Endings
S.No.	Suffix	Meaning	Examples
1	-ate	to make, to cause to be or become	violate, tolerate, exacerbate, emanate
2	-en	to cause to be or have; to come to be or have	quicken, lengthen, frighten
3	-ify, -fy	to make, form into	beautify, electrify, rectify
4	-ize	to cause to be or become; to bring about	colonize, plagiarize, synchronize