MATERI PENDUKUNG
Pertemuan
13
Building Your Vocabulary
The material in this section is designed to help you improve your vocabulary but it is also necessary for you
to:
(i) Read as much material as you can: fiction, non-fiction, magazines,
newspapers.
(ii) Look up any unfamiliar words in a good dictionary. Students planning on
taking the TOEFL test should have, or borrow, an American English
dictionary and not a bilingual one.
(iii) Develop a system of learning vocabulary. Each individual has his own learning system. You may write
the words with their definitions on cards and test yourself by regularly reviewing them, or you may
keep a notebook
of words that are unfamiliar to you.
.
(a) Roots, prefixes and suffixes
Learning the roots, prefixes and suffixes will enable you to work out many of the new
words that you may encounter in your reading and on the TOEFL test.
ERUPTION
PEDIA TRICS
MANDA TORY
rupt
break
ANACHRONISTIC
CREDULOUS
t
mand
f
order
cred
chron
believe
time
Roots
The root contains the basic meaning of a word. Prefixes and suffixes can be added on to
the root. For example, the root" graph" means "writing", so the English word
"graphology" means "the study of writing". Learning the root will help you work out the
meaning of many new words you will encounter. The following is a list of some of the
most common Greek and Latin roots.
Root
acerb, acr (L)
agr (L) amb(u)l
(L) anima (L)
aster (G) auto
(L) bene (L)
bio (G) brev
(L)
Meaning
sharp, bitter
land
walk
life, spirit star
self
well
life
short
Examples
acrid, acerbic
agrarian, agronomy ambulate,
preamble animate, animal
asterisk, asteroid
. automatic,
autobiography
beneficiary, benign biology,
biography abbreviate, brevity
capit (L)
carn (L)
cede, cess (L) cide
(L)
civ (L)
chron (G)
corp (L)
cred (L)
cycle (G)
demo (G) domin
(L) dynam (G)
err (L)
fact (L)
fide (L)
fin (L)
flex, flect (L) fort
(L)
gam(y) (G) gen (L)
grad (L)
gram, graph (G)
hend (L)
homo (G)
hydr (G)
ject (L)
jud, jur, jus (L)
junct (L)
leg (L)
loc (L)
log (G)
mand (L) manu (L)
mar (L)
med (L)
miss, mit (L) mob
(L)
mort (L)
nom (L)
nov (L)
oper (L)
part (L) pass/path
(LIG) ped (L)
ped (G)
phon (G)
port (L)
prim (L)
rect (L)
rupt (L)
head
flesh
go
kill
citizen
time
body
believe
circle
people
master
power
wander
make, do
trust limit
bend
strength
marriage
birth step
writing
grasp same
water
throw
law
join
law
place
word, reason
order
hand
sea
middle
send
move
death
name
new
work
share, divide
sUffer, feel
foot
child
sound
carry
first straight
break
capital, capitulate
carnal, carnivore
proceed, recede, access suicide,
genocide
civilian, civic chronological,
anachronism corpse,
corporation credible, credence
bicycle, cyclone demagogue,
democratic dominate, dominion
dynamics, dynamo
error, errant
factor, manufacture confide,
fidelity
finish, infinite
reflect, flexible
fortress, fortitude monogamy,
polygamy genetic, regenerate
grad1.lal, graduate autograph,
graphic comprehend, apprehend
homogeneous, homosexual
hydrant, hydraulics
eject, reject
judgment, jury, justice junction,
adjunct
legal, legitimate
location, dislocate monologue,
logic command, mandate
manual, manipulate marine,
submarine intermediate, median
transmit, missile
mobility, automobile mortal,
mortuary nominate, nominal
renovate, novel cooperate,
operative partition, participate
passion, pathetic
pedal, pedestrian pediatrician,
orthopedic phonograph,
telephone transport, portable
primary, primal
direct, rectify
interrupt, erupt
sci (L)
scope (G) scribe,
script (L) sign (L)
spect (L) struct (L)
tend, tens (L) term
(L)
theo (G)
tribut (L)
urb (L)
vene, vent (L)
vers, vert (L) vid,
vis (L) volu, volv
(L) .
know
watch
write
mark
look, watch
build
stretch
end, limit god
bestow
city
come
turn
see
turn over, roll
science, conscience
telescope, microscope
inscribe, prescription
signature, design
spectator, inspection
structure, construction
extend, tension terminate,
terminal theology, atheist
distribute, contribute
urban, suburb intervene,
prevention convert,
diversion vision, video
revolve, evolution
Prefixes
AB STAIN
HEMI SPHERE
MONO POLY
IM MOVABLE
PRE DICT
A prefix is a combination of letters placed before a word, or word root, to change its
meaning. For example, the prefix "pre" means "before", so the word "predict" means "to
say before". By learning the prefixes you will understand the meaning and formation of
words in English more clearly. The following is a list of common Latin and Greek
prefixes.
Prefix
a, ab
ad
ambi
ante
bi
co, col, com, con, cor
contra
de dec
Meaning away
from to
both
before
two
with, together
against
down, out
ten
Examples
absence, abstain, averse
adopt, adorn
ambiguous, ambivalent antecedent,
anticipate
bicycle, bifocal
cooperate, coeducation, collaborate,
collate, compare, combine, consent,
concentrate, correspond, correlate
contradict, contrary
descend, deduct
decade/. decimal
dis
ern, en ex
extra
il, im, in
bad, wrong
to make
out, from beyond,
outside not
disorder, disability
embitter, enjoy
export, except
extraordinary, extraneous
illegal, illiterate, impossible, immovable,
between, among
incapable, insignificant international,
one
intermediate monopoly, monogamy,
in the way of many unicorn object, observe
after
polyglot, polygon
before
postpone, postscript
forward
preview, predict
again
provoke, procession
half
return, rebuild
under
semiannual, hemisphere, demigod
three
submarine, substitute
triple, tripod
inter
mono/uni
ob
poly
post
pre
pro
re
semi/hemi/ demi
sub
tri
Suffixes
APPROV AL
FAST EST
HARM FUL
SPECUL ATE
TEA CH ER
A suffix is a combination 'of letters added at the end of a word; or word root. Its purpose
is either to form a new word or to show the function of the word. For example, the suffix
-er indicates a person who does things, so the word "teacher" indicates a person who
teaches. By learning the suffixes we can form or recognize the function of words. The
following is a list of common suffixes.
NOUN
SUFFIXES
People who do things
Suffix Examples
-ee
employee, referee
-eer
engineer, racketeer
-er
teacher, worker
-or
senator, visitor
People associated with things and places
Suffix Examples
-an
Mexican, Roman
-ian
musician, magician
-ist
motorist, artist
Feminine forms
Suffix Examples
-ess
hostess, waitress
-ine/trix heroine, aviatrix
N.B. If you wish to indicate the feminine form of some words where -ess cannot be
added, simply use the word "woman", "lady" or "female" before the noun.
Diminutives
Suffix
-et, -let
-ling, -ule
-en
double consonant + y
The state of being
Suffix
-age
-al
-ance, -ence -ary
-dom
-hood
-ion, -sion, -tion
-ism
-ity
-ment
-ness
-ship
Contain or hold a quantity Suffix
-ful
ADJECTIVE
SUFFIXES
Having the quality of
Suffix .
-able, -ible
-ant, -ent
-ary
-ory
-ish
-like
-some
Examples
pocket, booklet
duckling, molecule
chicken, maiden
Bobby, Johnny
Examples
marriage, storage
approval, recital
acceptance, occurrence functionary,
customary kingdom, freedom
womanhood, fatherhood selection,
division, intervention
. realism,
Buddhism
hostility, calamity development,
punishment greatness, humbleness
relationship, dictatorship
Examples mouthful,
handful
Examples
eatable, responsible
hesitant, prudent sanitary,
complimentary satisfactory,
sensory girlish, oldish
Godlike, ladylike tiresome,
lonesome
-ous
-worthy
-ly
-y
dangerous, courageous
trustworthy, praiseworthy
fatherly, lively
sandy, salty
-ful and -less Suffix
-ful (=with)
-less (= without)
Examples faithful,
harmful careless,
painless
Comparatives and superlatives
Suffix
Examples
-er
longer, younger
-est
longest, youngest
ADVERB
SUFFIXES
VERB
SUFFIXES
EXERCISE 1
These are similar to the adjective suffixes.
Suffix
-er (comparative)
-est (superlative)
-ly
Examples harder,
faster hardest,
fastest slowly,
quickly
To make
Suffix
-ate
-en
-fy, -ify -ize
Examples
speculate, circulate
soften, sharpen purify,
simplify tranquilize,
immunize
1. Make verbs from these words:
Hospital, regular, captive, domestic, sympathy, active, strength ,peace, false
saint ,thick ,solid
2. Make these words feminine:
Author
traitor
tiger
adventurer
master
hero
duke
heir
lion
actor
sculptor
widower
3. Make abstract nouns from these words:
high
true
dead
young
broad
hot
fly
grow
4. Make these words "negative:
convenient
normal
conclusive
frequent
comfort
trust
soluble
fortunate
agree
believe
graceful
please
5. Form adjectives from these words:
Wind
earth snow
year
day
sun
EXERCISE 2
mud
silver
Using the roots studied in this section, work out the meaning of these words
without using a dictionary:
1. acrimonious
2. inanimate
(A) bitter
(A) not alive
(B) smooth
(B) without any problems
3. dehydrated
(A) without electricity
(B) without water
4. agronomy
(A) study of wars
(B) study of land
5. incarnate
(A) embodied in flesh
(B) burned slowly
6. autonomy
(A) self government
(B) research after death
7. congenital
(A) from birth
(B) easily made
9. convolution
(A) a recovery
(B) a twist
8. prologue
(A) introductory words
(B) an extension
10. avert
(A) turn away from
(B) contact