What Is a Root Word?

We use words constantly to express ourselves and exchange thoughts with others. We write, speak, hear, read, and listen to words. Some research suggests the average person can speak from 4,000 to 7,000 words in a day.

All words have origins that might date from days to millennia since their inception. The English language is about 1,400 years old; one of the earliest-known English dictionaries, The Elementarie (1582), contained 8,000 words. Today’s English dictionaries can include up to hundreds of thousands of them.

Words can be complex or simple. Different word parts also can combine to form new words with new meanings. The root of a word—also referred to by some as a base word—is its primary morpheme, which is the smallest grammatical unit that cannot be divided further into parts. Every word in American English has at least one morpheme.

The grammatical unit can be a free morpheme, which is a word that can stand alone, or a bound morpheme, which is an affix (a prefix or a suffix) that cannot stand alone but can form a word by combining with other morphemes.

More than half of English words have roots in Latin and Greek. Many words also have German, French, and Spanish origins, which often have their own Latin roots as well.

When standing alone, the foreign root words themselves might not always make sense to English writers and speakers, but we can quickly recognize their contributions to our lexicon when they are combined with other word parts.

In our contemporary English vocabulary, we can readily infer the different parts of words, including their roots and prefixes or suffixes.

Word Roots in Different Parts of Speech

Those familiar with English know that in the preceding words, the root has an understood meaning, and the prefixes and suffixes offer much less meaning to us without the root. When combined, however, they form a word that can express.

Let’s look at a few more words with Greek and Latin roots:

Word Roots for Expanding Vocabulary

Being familiar with word roots and how words originate becomes a versatile tool in building vocabulary and interpreting unfamiliar words.

For example, many versed in English recognize that the Greek root “phobia” stands for “fear.” Sometimes that root is attached to prefixes we readily know, such as with claustrophobia (fear of small, confined spaces) and arachnophobia (fear of spiders).

We also might encounter words such as demophobia (fear of crowds) and anthrophobia (fear of flowers). We might not instantly recognize the fear the prefix identifies, but because we understand the word root, we’re halfway to comprehension.

Understanding roots also helps to better deconstruct words. For example, uncharacteristically is a 20-letter adverb common to English vernacular that means “not consistent with established or expected qualities or attributes” (e.g., James is uncharacteristically late).

This word contains four parts (morphemes): character (root, free morpheme), un- (prefix, bound morpheme), -istic (suffix, bound morpheme), and -ally (suffix, bound morpheme). Breaking the full word down this way can simplify the spelling of it as well as our initial insight into its meaning, even if we understand only a couple of parts as opposed to all of them.

Word Roots and Affixes for Word-Count Reduction

Understanding word roots and their conjoining parts further can support written precision by allowing us to reduce word count.

Related Topic

How Does a Word Become a Word?

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Teachers frequently debate this question: What’s the difference between a root, base word, and stem? The reason teachers are forced to debate this question is that their textbooks present a model that quickly falls apart in the real world.

If teachers are confused, their students will also be confused. By the end of this page, you won’t be confused. To end this confusion, we will look at two systems:

The Traditional Root and Base-Word System for Kids
A Modern System of Morphemes, Roots, Bases, and Stems from Linguistics

The Traditional Root and Base-Word System for Kids

Here is a problem-filled system that, unfortunately, some students still learn.

Students learn that are Greek and Latin roots. Most of these roots cannot stand alone as words when we remove the prefixes and suffixes.

justify      : jus (law)

Students also learn that can stand alone as words when we remove all of the prefixes and suffixes. Students learn that if it cannot stand alone when we remove all of the prefixes and suffixes, then it is not a base word.

kindness      kind

The problem comes later in the day when the teacher is teaching verb tenses.

Look at these two verbs: responded and responding. What’s the base word?

Isn’t re- a prefix? If re- is a prefix, then respond can’t be a base word. I suspect that spond is a Latin root. Is it?

I’m not sure. Let me research this. Yes, the word respond has the prefix re- attached to the Latin root spond. The Latin root spond comes from sponder, which means to pledge.

Although the teacher was looking for the answer “respond,” Student #2’s answer was the correct answer according to this Traditional System. That’s how easily the Traditional System falls apart. And the problems get worse from here.

Are you an elementary or middle school teacher? Have you taken a look at Pattern Based Writing: Quick & Easy Essay on the homepage?

Modern Linguistics

I looked at a few current student textbooks from major publishers, and most of them don’t mention the terms base or base word. They only use the term root in their basic word studies. I suspect that this is because modern linguistics has created a new meaning for the term base.

In case you are not aware, modern linguistics and modern grammar fix many of the broken models from centuries past—i.e., models and definitions that quickly fall apart when you question them. These days, most books on linguistics and morphology present a somewhat standardized model. In English Word-Formation (1983), Laurie Bauer explains this model succinctly and definitively. Let’s take a look.

English Word-Formation (1983) by Laurie Bauer

As you can see below, Bauer acknowledges the root/stem/base problem and then explains a model that removes the ambiguity.

“‘Root’, ‘stem’ and ‘base’ are all terms used in the literature to designate that part of a word that remains when all affixes have been removed. Of more recent years, however, there has been some attempt to distinguish consistently between these three terms.”

This model holds up across the curriculum. This model is the foundation of what I teach my students.

Roots, Stems, and Bases

I always like to have a complete model in mind that holds up across the curriculum. This lets me find teaching moments and ensures that I can answer my students’ questions clearly and consistently. Although I may not teach my students the entire model, at least the concepts are straight in my mind.

For this reason, I created this “Perfect Model of Roots, Stems, and Bases.” To be clear, this model is an interpretation and fuller explanation of what you might find in a linguistics book. Let me explain it to you. It all begins with morphemes.

Keep in mind that teachers don’t need to teach their students this entire model. In fact, most teachers will want to keep their morphology lessons simple and focus on roots, prefixes, and suffixes. But all teachers will want to understand this entire model.

Morphemes

The term morpheme unifies the concepts of roots, prefixes, and suffixes, and therefore, it is an extremely valuable word. In short, words are composed of parts called morphemes, and each morpheme contributes meaning to the word. Morphemes are the smallest unit of language that contains meaning. Roots, prefixes, and suffixes all have one thing in common—they are all single morphemes. In contrast, stems and bases can be composed of one or many morphemes.

Root / Root Morpheme

When I use the term root, I always mean the root morpheme. The root is always the main morpheme that carries the main meaning of a word. Since a morpheme is the smallest unit of language that contains meaning, we can’t divide or analyze the root morpheme any further. Although a root can be a stand-alone word, to avoid confusion, I never use the term “root word.” I use the term root, and I use the term root morpheme to reinforce what a root is.

We have two types of root morphemes

1. Dependent (bound) Roots: These roots cannot stand alone as words. These roots are usually Greek and Latin roots. Here are a few examples:

2. Independent (free) Roots: These roots are stand-alone words. Practically speaking, these roots are almost always single-syllable words. You know the ones. It seems to me that most multi-syllable words can be further divided and further analyzed. With a little research, one finds that an ancient prefix or suffix has merged with a root. In short, most multi-syllable words are not root morphemes.

Here is what they thought 150 years ago. Although modern linguistics does not agree with these statements, it’s still food for thought. My point is that most of the independent roots that we deal with inside of the classroom are single-syllable words.

“All languages are formed from roots of one syllable.” – New Englander Magazine (1862)

“All words of all languages can be reduced to one-syllable roots.” – New Jerusalem Magazine (1853)

Dependent Root and Independent Root

Modern linguistics use the term bound (for dependent) and free (for independent) to classify morphemes. Since teachers spend so much time teaching students about dependent clauses and independent clauses, I transfer this knowledge and terminology over to morphemes. Put simply: independent morphemes CAN stand alone; dependent morphemes CAN’T stand alone.

PREFIXES and SUFFIXES are almost always dependent morphemes—i.e., they can’t stand alone as words.

ROOTS are either dependent or independent morphemes.

Now, we will examine words that contain one root and words that contain two roots. As you examine these words, pay special attention to the dependent root and independent root aspect.

Many words have just one root. That one root may be a Dependent Root or an Independent Root. Remember, the root carries the main meaning of the word.

justify              jus

kindness            kind

Some words have two roots. The roots may be Dependent Roots or Independent Roots. With two roots, each root contributes near equal meaning to the word.

Two Dependent Roots

geography        geo (earth)    graph (write)

carnivore    carn (flesh)    vor (swallow)

cardiovascular    cardi (heart)    vas (vessel)

Two Independent Roots

bathroom    bath    room

downfall    down    fall

popcorn    pop    corn

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I use the term stem just as Bauer does. To find the stem, simply remove the inflectional suffixes. It’s that simple.

When to Use the Term Stem: The term stem is quite unnecessary in many classrooms, as all stems are bases. For this reason, teachers can always use the term base instead of stem. However, the concept of stems is helpful in teaching students about inflectional suffixes. Inflectional suffixes are different from derivational affixes (derivational prefixes and derivational suffixes).

reddest    red

girls’    girl

boats    boat

preapproved    preapprove

justifying    justify

responded    respond

unjustifiable    no stem

kindness    no stem

Base / Base Word

Bauer says, “A base is any form to which affixes of any kind can be added. This means that any root or any stem can be termed a base.”

In the table below, I use two labels to show how base and root relate to each other. Sometimes a base is a root (marked   ), and sometimes it is not a root (marked   ).

To be clear, we can add a prefix or suffix to every base even if it already has a prefix or suffix. Furthermore, if we can add a prefix or suffix to something, we can call it a base.

reread    read

unhelpful    helpful    help

justifying    justify    jus

unreliable    reliable    rely

preponderance    ponderance (uncommon)    ponder

responded    respond    spond

preapproved    preapprove    approve    approved    proved    prove

Base vs. Base Word: To keep things simple, teachers should probably strike the term “base word” from their vocabulary. However, if the base is a complete word that can stand alone, teachers may choose to (or through force of habit) refer to it as a base word. If the base can’t stand alone, be sure not to call it a base word.

When to Use the Term Base: The term base is somewhat of a generic term for when we are not interested in or concerned with the root morpheme. As an example, we may choose to use the term base when we are ADDING prefixes and suffixes. When we are adding prefixes and suffixes, we often are unconcerned with finding or discussing the root morpheme. (Remember, we often add prefixes and suffixes to words that already contain prefixes and suffixes.) We may also choose to use the term base when removing a single, specific prefix or suffix, as the word may still contain other prefixes or suffixes.

Putting It All Together

Here is a table to help get you started in your word analysis studies related to root, stem, and base.

The asterisks may be the most important part of this table. They help illustrate that every word has a unique history that often makes analysis and classification complicated and debatable.

* act and graph are also Latin roots

** deny is from Latin denegare = de (away) + negare (to refuse; to say no); since deny technically
has a Latin prefix (de-), you may choose to classify the word differently.

*** forest is from Latin foris meaning outdoors, and unlike the word deny, cannot be analyzed as
having a prefix or suffix attached.

In English grammar, a root word is the basic lexical unit of a word that carries its core meaning. It is the foundation upon which other words are built by adding prefixes and suffixes. Root words are also known as base words or stem words.

For example, the root word “love” can form other words such as “lovable”, “lovely”, “lover”, “lovingly”, etc. Similarly, the root word “play” can form “playful”, “player”, “playing”, “playground”, and so on.

Understanding root words can help improve vocabulary and comprehension skills as it allows one to recognize the meaning of unfamiliar words by breaking them down into their component parts.

How many word roots are there in English?

There is no definitive answer to the exact number of word roots in English as the language has borrowed extensively from other languages over time, resulting in a vast and constantly evolving vocabulary. However, some estimates suggest that there are thousands of word roots in English.

English has a diverse range of root words, including those of Latin, Greek, Germanic, French, and many other origins. These roots provide the basis for the construction of many English words, allowing speakers to easily understand new words and form new words themselves.

It’s worth noting that many English words have multiple roots, and some words have roots from more than one language. Additionally, some words have been created in English by combining two or more existing words, rather than by using a root word.

Here is a root word list in English:

Aqua: aquarium, aquatic, aquamarine, aqueduct, aquaplane

Aud: audio, auditorium, audible, audition, inaudible

Auto: automobile, autonomy, automatic, autograph, autocracy

Bene: benefit, benevolent, benefactor, benign, benediction

Biblio: bibliography, bibliophile, bibliotherapy, bibulous, bibliopole

Bio: biography, biosynthesis, biochemistry, biofeedback, biotech

Cap: capture, capacity, capsule, capitalize, decapitate

Cardi: cardiac, cardiology, cardiogram, cardiopulmonary, cardiomegaly

Cede: concede, recede, intercede, secede, antecedent

Cogn: recognize, cognitive, incognito, agnostic, cognizance

Corp: corporation, corpse, corporal, corpulent, corporatism

Crypto: cryptic, cryptography, cryptogram, encrypt, cryptologist

Demi: demigod, demitasse, demimonde, demirelief, demitint

Derm: dermatology, dermal, epidermis, hypodermic, taxidermy

Dict: dictate, dictator, diction, predict, verdict

Duct: conduct, ductile, ductwork, abduct, induct

Dyna: dynamic, dynamite, dynasty, hydrodynamic, thermodynamic

Equi: equal, equitable, equinox, equilateral, equidistant

Extra: extraordinary, extraterrestrial, extravagant, extraneous, extracurricular

Fer: transfer, infer, fertile, defer, aquifer

Fid: confident, fidelity, infidel, confidential, affidavit

Flu: fluid, fluctuate, influence, influenza, fluent

Fort: fortress, fortify, fortunate, fortitude, comfort

Fract: fracture, fraction, refract, infraction, fractal

Gen: generation, genetics, generate, genealogy, carcinogen

Geo: geology, geography, geocentric, geothermal, geopolitics

Graph: graphic, autograph, graphite, photography, lithograph

Hydro: hydrology, hydroplane, hydrophobia, dehydrate, hydrometer

Hyper: hyperactive, hyperbole, hypertension, hypercritical, hyperrealism

Hypo: hypodermic, hypoglycemia, hypothesis, hypothermia, hypotension

Intra: intramural, intravenous, intrapersonal, intrastate, intrauterine

Jur: justice, juror, jurisdiction, jury, injure

Loc: location, relocate, local, dislocate, locomotion

Log: logic, logarithm, dialogue, apology, analog

Luc: lucid, translucent, elucidate, lucubrate, pellucid

Macro: macroeconomics, macrocosm, macrophage, macronutrient, macroevolution

Mal: malevolent, malfunction, malnutrition, malcontent, maladjusted

Medi: medium, mediate, meditation, medieval, intermediary

Mega: megaphone, megalopolis, megabyte, megalomania, megafauna

Micro: microscope, microbe, microcosm, microeconomics, microchip

Naut: Nautical, astronaut, astronautics

Neo: Neoclassical, neologism, neonatal

Neuro: Neurology, neuroscience, neuropsychology

Oct: Octagon, octopus, octave

Omni: Omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent

Opt: Optimal, optician, optimize

Pac: Pacify, pacifist, pacifier

Pan: Panorama, pandemic, panacea

Path: Pathology, empathy, psychopath

Ped: Pedal, pedestrian, pediatrics

Phil: Philosophy, philanthropy, bibliophile

Phon: Phone, phonics, microphone

Photo: Photography, photogenic, photosynthesis

Pod: Podiatry, tripod, pseudopod

Poly: Polygon, polygamy, polymer

Quad: Quadrant, quadruple, quadrennial

Retro: Retroactive, retrograde, retrospective

Rhin: Rhinoceros, rhinoplasty, rhinestone

Scope: Telescope, microscope, periscope

Sect: Section, sectarian, bisect

Semi: Semifinal, semicolon, semiconscious

Sol: Solitude, solo, solar

Spec: Spectacle, specter, spectator

Super: Superman, superpower, supervises

Syn/Sym: Synchronize, synthesis, sympathy

Tele: Television, telegraph, telepathy

Terra: Terrestrial, terrain, extraterrestrial

Trans: Transportation, transfer, transcontinental

Ultra: Ultraviolet, ultrasonic, ultraconservative

Uni: Universe, unify, unicorn

Ver: Verify, veracity, veritable

Vice: Vice-president, viceroy, vice-chancellor

Vid/Vis: Video, visible, vision

Water: Waterproof, watercolor, waterlogged

Xeno: Xenophobia, xenophile, xenon

Y/yr: Yearly, anniversary, centenary

Zen: Zenith, zenon, zenana

Zo: Zoology, zoo, protozoan

Root Words List | Images

How do you find the root of a word?

A root can be any part of a word that carries meaning: the beginning, middle or end. Prefixes, bases, and suffixes are types of roots. The prefix appears at the beginning of a word, the base in the middle and the suffix at the end. Most English root words came from the Greek and Latin languages.

What is root in simple words?

root. In biology, the part of a plant that grows downward and holds the plant in place, absorbs water and minerals from the soil, and often stores food. The main root of a plant is called the primary root; others are called secondary roots.

How many root words are there in English?

120 Root Words, Prefixes, and Suffixes PDF List – Literacy In Focus. The English language is filled with words borrowed from ancient Greek and Latin, which makes supplementing your instruction with word parts practice that much more critical.

How do you describe a root?

root, in botany, that part of a vascular plant normally underground. Its primary functions are anchorage of the plant, absorption of water and dissolved minerals and conduction of these to the stem, and storage of reserve foods.

What is a root word for kindergarten?

The word kindergarten comes from the German language. Kinder means children and garten means garden. The term dates back to the 19th century. Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) started the first kindergarten, Garden of Children, in 1840.

What are the most common root words?

Common Word Roots

What is the difference between a root word and a prefix?

A word root is a part of a word. It contains the core meaning of the word, but it cannot stand alone. A prefix is also a word part that cannot stand alone. It is placed at the beginning of a word to change its meaning.

Can a word have no root word?

An unpaired word is a base word (or opposite word) that doesn’t exist (or is very rarely used) without a particular prefix or suffix. For example, we say we are overwhelmed or underwhelmed, but it’s rare to hear someone say they’re just whelmed.

What is prefix root word and suffix?

Prefix: a group of letters that come at the beginning of a word. Root: the basic part of a word; the prefixes and suffixes are added to it. Suffix: a group of letters that come at the end of a word. un + change + able = unchangeable. Some words are just root words, meaning they don’t have a prefix or suffix.

Can you be Sheveled?

Originally it meant ‘having the hair uncovered’ and later it referred to the hair itself, hanging loose, and so messy or untidy.) You can be disheveled without ever being “sheveled.” It’s pronounced /di-SHEH-vuhld/, not as you sometimes hear it, /dis-HEH-vuhld/.

What’s the opposite of a root word?

root. Antonyms: branch, ramification, outcome, product, issue, progeny. Synonyms: radix, radicle, stem, origin, source, spring, rise, commencement, parent.

Can a suffix stand alone?

Prefixes and suffixes cannot usually stand alone as words and need to be attached to root words to give meaning, so they are known as bound morphemes. Morphemes that can stand alone and have meaning are called free morphemes.

What is Shevel?

SHEVEL v. to distort, twist out of shape.

What is a word with no opposite?

An unpaired word is one that, according to the usual rules of the language, would appear to have a related word but does not. Such words usually have a prefix or suffix that would imply that there is an antonym, with the prefix or suffix being absent or opposite.

What is a root word example?

A basic word to which affixes (prefixes and suffixes) are added is called a root word because it forms the basis of a new word. The root word is also a word in its own right. For example, the word lovely consists of the word love and the suffix -ly.

What root word means?

1 : the part of a plant that grows underground, gets water from the ground, and holds the plant in place Elm trees have shallow roots. Pull weeds up by the roots so that they don’t grow back.

What is a root word and suffix?

Root: the basic part of a word; the prefixes and suffixes are added to it. Suffix: a group of letters that come at the end of a word. un + change + able = unchangeable. Some words are just root words, meaning they don’t have a prefix or suffix. Some words have a root word and just a prefix or just a suffix.

What is the root word of grammar?

Etymology. The word grammar is derived from Greek γραμματικὴ τέχνη (grammatikḕ téchnē), which means “art of letters”, from γράμμα (grámma), “letter”, itself from γράφειν (gráphein), “to draw, to write”. The same Greek root also appears in graphics, grapheme, and photograph.

What is suffix example?

A suffix is a letter or group of letters, for example ‘-ly’ or ‘- ness’, which is added to the end of a word in order to form a different word, often of a different word class. For example, the suffix ‘-ly’ is added to ‘ quick’ to form ‘quickly’. Compare affix and , prefix.

What are common roots?

1. A root word is the primary form of a word while a base word is a word that can stand on its own. 2. A root word may or may not have a meaning while a base word has a meaning on its own.

What is a free root word?

Free roots are free morphemes. They can stand alone to function as words. recollect, bilingual, uneasy, mislead, hardly, attractive. Bound roots are bound morphemes. They cannot stand alone to function as words because they are no longer used in Modern English.

Can a word root stand alone?

A root word can be defined as a basic standalone word in which affixes can be added to create new words. A root is the basis of a word and it typically does not stand alone.

What is the root word for mother?

The Latin root matr means “mother.” This Latin root is the word origin of a good number of English vocabulary words, including matriarch, material, and matter. The root matr is easily recalled via the word maternal, for a woman who acts in a maternal fashion is being “motherly.”

Can a root be an affix?

Properties of affixes:

Affixes are subclassified by where they attach to roots. Prefixes occur before roots, suffixes are placed after a root, and infixes occur inside a root. Some languages even have circumfixes, which surround a root. There is another type of affix called a linker or linking morpheme or filler.

Can a word have no Morphemes?

Many words in English consist of this type of word element

A free morpheme is the opposite of a bound morpheme, a word element that cannot stand alone as a word. Many words in English consist of a single free morpheme.

What are the oldest words?

Mother, bark and spit are just three of 23 words that researchers believe date back 15,000 years, making them the oldest known words.

Do all words have a root word?

In most cases, a word is built upon at least one root. 2. Words can have more than one prefix, root, or suffix. Words can be made up of two or more roots (geo/logy).

What is a base of a word?

A base word is a word that can have a prefix or a suffix added to it. When a prefix or suffix is added to a base word, the word’s meaning changes and a new word is formed. A prefix is added to the beginning of a base word.

What is the difference between a base word and a root word?

What is the last word on a page called?

What does 6 mean in Greek?

Is Quad Latin or Greek?

The root -quad- comes from Latin, where it has the meaning “four, fourth.” This meaning is found in such words as: quad, quadrangle, quadrant, quadruped, quadruplet.

What is the prefix for 11 in chemistry?

What is the prefix for 3 in chemistry?

EXTENSION OF RULES A-1.1 AND A-2.5 CONCERNING NUMERICAL TERMS USED IN ORGANIC CHEMICAL NOMENCLATURE

What are the 10 alkanes?

Table: Structural Formulas of the First Ten Continuous-chain Alkanes

What are the 20 alkanes?

Terms in this set (20)

What are the first 10 alkenes?

List of Alkenes

What are the first 10 alkynes?

What are the first 10 straight chain alkanes?

Terms in this set (10)

What are the 5 alkanes?

12.2: Structures and Names of Alkanes

How do you remember the first 10 alkanes?

What are the first six alkanes?

What are the first three alkanes?

We introduced the three simplest alkanes—methane (CH 4), ethane (C 2H 6), and propane (C 3H 8)—in Chapter 4 “Covalent Bonding and Simple Molecular Compounds”, Section 4.6 “Introduction to Organic Chemistry”. They are shown again in Figure 12.1 “The Three Simplest Alkanes”.

What are the first 10 hydrocarbons?