These exercises contain items that are (depending on the version of MS Word you are using) either highlighted in yellow are
enclosed in red brackets. When you move your mouse cursor over a yellow area or a red-bracketed area, a 'hidden text
message' will appear on the screen. Please, keep your cursor to the far right while you are reading the text material. When
you are ready to 'uncover' the hidden text, move your cursor to the yellow or red areas.
Let's practice this 'uncovering' procedure:
How much is one plus one?
a.
b.
c.
d.
zero
two
five
none of the above
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Word Parts
The Prefix 'pre-'
A prefix comes at the beginning of a word. When you come across an unfamiliar word, there are two techniques that can
help you determine the new word's meaning:
- look at the word and see if you can get a basic understanding of its meaning by using your knowledge of word parts
- look for context clues by examining the sentence that contains the unfamiliar word, along with the sentence before and
the sentence after
prepreamble
Texas lawmakers included a preamble section when they authored the revised DWI statute.
prearrange
In order to avoid any problems with the wedding and reception, we should prearrange all of the activities.
precaution
Because we were living in an area that frequently is hit by a hurricane, we took the precaution of having a large supply of
bottled water.
precede
Since General Garcia outranked Major Williams, she was allowed to precede him in the parade.
precedent
After leaving office, former President Clinton did not follow the precedent of avoiding comments concerning the current
President's policies.
precipitate
The dramatic change in weather conditions precipitated an early return home from our vacation trip.
preclude
Your low grades in college may preclude you from being accepted into medical school.
precocious
Being able to read literature at the age of four, the precocious child was far ahead of the other students in his
preschool class.
precognition
Using her abilities of precognition, the investigator knew when the deadly attack would occur.
precook
In order to save time, the chef will precook some of the recipes on the restaurant's menu.
precool
The frozen vegetables retained their special taste because they were precooled before freezing.
precursor
The heavy rain was the precursor to the terrible flooding of the city streets.
predate
The invention of the radio predated the invention of the television.
predecease
Because of severe health problems the father predeceased his daughter.
predecessor
President Jimmy Carter was President Ronald Reagan's predecessor.
predetermine
The choice for the new department manager was predetermined at the most recent executive committee session.
predict
The economic advisor predicted that a recession would begin within six months, and in approximately four months the
economic indicators proved her right.
predigest
The hospital patient was unable to produce certain digestive juices; therefore, her meals were predigested with special
chemical enzymes.
predilection
His younger sister had a predilection for desserts that contained large amounts of chocolate in them.
predominant
Following the championship series, most fans agreed that the visiting college had the predominant team.
preemie
Because the medical emergency forced an early delivery, the newborn baby was classified as a preemie and received
intensive treatment in the Pediatric ICU.
preeminent
The keynote speaker at the convention was a preeminent expert in biochemistry.
preempt
The regularly scheduled TV program was preempted by a special national address from the President following the 911
disaster.
preestablish
So that the military unit would have a command center from which to operate, the construction engineers preestablished a
base of operations.
preexist
The horse and buggy preexisted the invention of the internal combustion engine.
preface
The author was very honored to announce that the current Texas Governor had written the preface to his upcoming
textbook on Texas politics.
prefer
Since his childhood years, Juan has preferred strawberry ice cream above all others.
preference
Preference is given to women and children when many people are trying to enter an elevator.
preflight
The Captain and her Co-Captain spent thirty minutes receiving their preflight instructions before departing for Houston.
pregnant
The woman had been pregnant for eight months and expected to give birth to her daughter in just a few more weeks.
preheat
If you preheat the over before putting in the frozen casserole, your dinner will be ready sooner.
prehistoric
Many claim that dinosaurs roamed the Earth during prehistoric times.
preignition
Because the gasoline was too low in octane rating, the engine was having preignition problems.
prejudge
The police officer made the mistake of prejudging the driver before knowing the circumstances of the traffic accident.
prejudice
The elected official showed her prejudice towards home schooling by stating that all home-schooled children are not
prepared to attend college.
preliminary
The judge in the case decided to hold a preliminary hearing prior to the main trial date.
preliterate
The preliterate population of the small pacific island was working hard to establish some form of written language.
prelude
Before the band performed their concert, there was a brief prelude of friends and fellow musicians who spoke of the
outstanding accomplishments that the band had achieved over the past twenty years.
premarital
After consulting with his attorney, the groom decided to have a premarital agreement with his soon-to-be wife concerning
his financial holdings.
premed
The woman had always wanted to have a career in medicine, so she began her premed studies at Northwest College.
premeditate
The cold-blooded killer was convicted of premeditated murder by a jury of twelve citizens.
premier
The magazine conducted a survey to determine who was the premier science fiction writer of the 20th Century.
premise
The scientist arrived at the conclusion based on the premise that the global temperature would continue to rise.
premonition
The father had a premonition that his daughter would be in danger in the near future.
prenatal
Since she was having some pain during her pregnancy, the lady scheduled a prenatal exam with the physician to find out
what the cause was.
prenuptial
The bride and groom signed a prenuptial agreement concerning the children from their previous marriages.
prepaid
To keep from having to carry a lot of cash on their vacation, the couple made sure their hotel room was prepaid.
preparation
With the hurricane approaching land, the community made preparations for the coming high wind and heavy rain.
prepare
To be ready for your next exam, you should prepare a detailed study schedule.
prerecord
Many of the commercials that you hear on the radio are prerecorded.
prerequisite
Before enrolling in Calculus II, you must fulfill the prerequisite of having passed Calculus I.
presage
Lack of studying for an upcoming exam usually presages a poor test score.
preschool
(see precocious)
presentiment
The soldier had the presentiment that he would not live out the day.
preset
The new car came equipped with several preset radio stations.
preside
The committee chairwoman presided over the legislative hearing.
presignify
The acceptance of the document was presignified by the attorney's signature.
presume
She presumed her date would arrive at the restaurant at the appointed time; however, he was more that twenty minutes
late.
pretax
The company placed funds in a pretax account, knowing that the taxes would be due soon.
preteen
The parents accompanied their preteen son to the city library.
pretend
When the police arrested the robber, she pretended to not know anything about the recent crime.
pretest
The student took a pretest at the beginning of the college semester, later to be given a posttest at the end of the semester.
pretext
In order to hide his guilt in the matter, the manager made up an elaberate pretext as to how the stolen money ended up in
his bank account.
pretrial
Both attorneys presented multiple pretrial motions during today's court hearing.
prevail
After many months of intensive training, the female sprinter prevailed over each of her opponents in the regional finals.
prevarication
The sheriff, after several hours of interrogating the witness, decided that the witness was guilty of prevarication.
prevent
When the firefighters entered the burning building, they were able to prevent an even greater disaster by turning off the
valve leading to a large liquid gas canister.
preview
Only a few fortunate moviegoers were able to preview the new movie before its release.
previous
A previous successful experiment made it possible for the scientist to discover the real cure for the disease.
prevision
Through prevision, the investigator was able to know when the next assault would take place.
prewar
The prewar period was one of great economic and intellectual prosperity.
unprecedented
Our nation in the last eight years has experienced an unprecedented level of financial prosperity.