Greek and Latin Roots

Grade 7 · English · Study Guide

Unlock the meaning of thousands of English words by learning the common Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes that form their foundations.

Here's a secret that will change the way you look at words forever: about 60% of English words come from Greek or Latin. When you know the roots, you can figure out the meaning of words you've never seen before. It's like having a decoder ring for the entire English language.

A root is the core part of a word that carries its basic meaning. The Latin root 'port' means 'carry' — that's why transport means 'carry across,' import means 'carry in,' export means 'carry out,' and portable means 'able to be carried.' Learn one root, unlock a dozen words.

Prefixes attach to the front of a word and change its meaning. The prefix 'un-' means 'not' (unhappy, unclear). 'Pre-' means 'before' (preview, prehistoric). 'Anti-' means 'against' (antibiotic, antisocial). Suffixes attach to the end and often change the word's part of speech. The suffix '-tion' turns verbs into nouns (create → creation). '-ful' means 'full of' (careful, hopeful). '-ology' means 'the study of' (biology, psychology, geology).

Greek roots show up heavily in science, medicine, and technology. 'Bio' means life (biology, biography). 'Geo' means earth (geography, geology). 'Tele' means far (telephone, telescope). 'Micro' means small (microscope, microorganism). Latin roots dominate law, government, and everyday vocabulary. 'Jud' means judge (judicial, judgment). 'Leg' means law (legal, legislature). 'Scrib/script' means write (inscribe, manuscript). When you see a new word, break it into its parts and use the roots to figure out the meaning.

High-Frequency Greek and Latin Roots
Root	Origin	Meaning	Example Words
port	Latin	carry	transport, import, portable
bio	Greek	life	biology, biography, antibiotic
geo	Greek	earth	geography, geology, geothermal
scrib/script	Latin	write	inscribe, manuscript, prescription
tele	Greek	far, distant	telephone, telescope, television
aud	Latin	hear	audience, auditorium, audible

Key terms

Root: The core part of a word that carries its base meaning
Prefix: A word part added to the beginning that changes meaning
Suffix: A word part added to the end that changes meaning or part of speech
Etymology: The study of the origin and history of words
Morpheme: The smallest unit of meaning in a word (roots, prefixes, suffixes are all morphemes)

Flashcards

Root 'port' (Latin): Carry — transport, import, portable, export
Root 'bio' (Greek): Life — biology, biography, antibiotic
Root 'geo' (Greek): Earth — geography, geology, geothermal
Prefix 'anti-': Against — antibiotic, antisocial, antidote
Suffix '-ology': The study of — biology, psychology, geology
Root 'aud' (Latin): Hear — audience, auditorium, audible

Practice questions

The Latin root 'port' means 'carry.' Based on this, what does 'export' most likely mean?
1. To carry backward
2. To carry within
3. To carry out to another country
4. To carry something heavy
Show answer
Answer: To carry out to another country
The prefix 'ex-' means 'out' and 'port' means 'carry' — so export literally means to carry goods out of a country.
The Greek root 'bio' means ___.
Show answer
Answer: life
'Bio' is one of the most common Greek roots — biology (study of life), biography (writing about a life), antibiotic (against life of bacteria).
The prefix 'anti-' means:
1. Before
2. Against
3. After
4. With
Show answer
Answer: Against
'Anti-' means against — antibiotic fights bacteria, antisocial is against social norms, antidote works against a poison.
Suffixes are added to the beginning of words to change their meaning.
Show answer
Answer: False
Suffixes go at the END of words (like -tion, -ful, -ology). Prefixes go at the beginning.
Which word contains the Greek root 'tele' meaning 'far'?
1. Television
2. Telephone
3. Telescope
4. All of the above
Show answer
Answer: All of the above
Television (see from far), telephone (sound from far), and telescope (see far objects) all use the Greek root 'tele' meaning distant.

Fun facts

The word 'hippopotamus' is pure Greek: 'hippo' means horse and 'potamos' means river — it literally means 'river horse.'
English has borrowed so many Latin words that English and Spanish share thousands of words from the same Latin roots.

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