The Word Within the Word
Stem Lesson 7
Part 1 (stems 151-165)
151. acro
meaning: high
Sentence example:
The unfortunate acrobat suffered
from acrophobia.
Clue Words:
acrobat, acronym, acropolis, acrophobia
acrophobia
• Fear of heights
152. culp
meaning: blame
Sentence example:
Unfortunately, the culprit was
exculpated and escaped punishment.
Clue Words:
culprit, culpable, exculpate, inculpate,
exculpatory
culpable
• guilty
153. derm
meaning: skin
Sentence example:
A pachyderm rarely suffers from
dermatitis on its trunk.
Clue Words:
dermatologist, dermatitis, pachyderm,
hypodermic, ectoderm, endoderm
Pachyderm
• An elephant
154. zo
meaning: animal
Sentence example:
Does the zoo have a protozoan
exhibit with microscopes to look
through?
Clue Words:
zoology, protozoa, zooplankton, zodiac,
Mesozoic, zoophilous, zoophagous, zoo
Zoology
• Study of animals
155. per
meaning: through
Sentence example:
The perforations let water percolate
through the membrane.
Clue Words:
perception, perforation, percolate,
perambulate
Perforation
• A hole
156. pac
meaning: peace
Sentence example:
The angry pacifists were not pacified
by the president’s militaristic speech.
Clue Words:
pacify, pacific, pacifist, pacifier, pacifism,
pacification, Pax Romana
Pacify
• To calm someone/ something
157. brev
meaning: short
Sentence example:
A long discursive speech lacks
brevity.
Clue Words:
brevity, abbreviation, brief, breviary, breve
Brevity
• conciseness
158. necro
meaning: death
Sentence example:
If you have necrophobia, avoid the
necropolis.
Clue Words:
necropolis, necromancer, necrophobia,
necrotic, necrobiosis
Necropolis
• An ancient cemetery
159. urb
meaning: city
Sentence example:
The wealthy urbanite in Chicago had
urbane manners.
Clue Words:
urban, urbane, suburbs, urbanite,
urbanologist, urbanism
urbane
• Sophisticated, elegant
160. pugn
meaning: fight
Sentence example:
His pugnacious attitude was
repugnant to his peace-loving
friends.
Clue Words:
pugnacious, repugnant, pugilist, impugn
Pugnacious
• Combative/ quarrelsome
161. ecto
meaning: outer
Sentence example:
Ectothermic species enjoy the
summer warmth.
Clue Words:
ectoderm, ectomorph, ectothermic,
ectoplasm, ectoparasite
Ectothermic
• Cold-blooded (i.e. an animal)
162. plasto
meaning: molded
Sentence example:
A plastic surgery question: “Is
rhinoplasty a form of dermoplasty?”
Clue Words:
plastic, dermoplasty, rhinoplasty, plaster,
plasticity, plastid
Rhinoplasty
• Plastic surgery on the nose
– A nose job
163. agog
meaning: leader
Sentence example:
Is a corrupt politician a demagogue
or a pedagogue?
Clue Words:
demagogue, pedagogue, synagogue,
pedagogy, mystagogue
Pedagogue
• A teacher
164. cle
meaning: small
Sentence example:
Is a blood corpuscle larger than a
molecule?
Clue Words:
molecule, corpuscle, follicle, minuscule,
ventricle, particle
Minuscule
• Very small
165. il
meaning: not
Sentence example:
Your corrupt suggestion is both
illegal and illogical.
Clue Words:
illegal, illogical, illicit, illiterate, illegible
Clue Words:
illegal, illogical, illicit, illiterate, illegible
Illegible
• unreadable