At a glance
How English makes new words
- Prefix + rootun + happy = unhappy
- Root + suffixhappy + ness = happiness
- Word + wordsun + flower = sunflower
- Short formphotograph → photo
What is a word?
A word is a group of letters with a meaning. We put a space between words.
cat = 3 letters, 1 word
sunflower = 9 letters, 1 word
Beats (syllables)
Clap the beats in a word. Each beat has a vowel sound.
cat – 1 beat
ap·ple – 2 beats
ba·na·na – 3 beats
wa·ter·mel·on – 4 beats
Word families
A word made from another word is a derivative. Happiness comes from happy.
| Root | Noun | Verb | Adjective | Adverb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| happy | happiness | – | happy, unhappy | happily |
| beauty | beauty | beautify | beautiful | beautifully |
| success | success | succeed | successful | successfully |
| care | care | care | careful, careless | carefully |
| strong | strength | strengthen | strong | strongly |
| decide | decision | decide | decisive | decisively |
Compound words
Two words can join to make a new word.
Very long words
A very long word in big dictionaries is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis: 45 letters! It is an illness of the lungs. Another famous long word is antidisestablishmentarianism (28 letters).
Practice
Answer the questions. Get 7 out of 10 to finish this lesson.