Welcome to NurseHub’s Lesson on Using Prefixes to Determine Word Meaning. This lesson will help to prepare you for your TEAS 7 ELU exam.
Below you will find common prefixes to study using the flashcards.
Learning Goals
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
● Determine the meaning of a prefix using two strategies.
Key Vocabulary
Here are some words you should know that will make this lesson easier:
● Prefix: an affix that goes before root words to change or alter the meaning
Key Points
● Use the two strategies (Study and Memorize and Plug It In) to determine the meaning of the prefix.
● Read each question and determine if you can eliminate any answer choices based on your familiarity with the words and their meanings.
Why do we need to know this skill?
● In prefix-type questions, you will see two types of questions.
1. Without context (“Which of the following is the meaning of the prefix extra-”?)
2. With additional context (“What is the meaning of the prefix inter– as used in the word intercontinental?”)
● Our approach to each question will depend on the information given during the question.
Question Type 1: With no context clues
Our first sample question is an example with no context clues. Read the question and the answer options first.
For this question type, you need to determine the meaning of the prefix without using context clues.
There are two strategies to approach this question:
1. Study and Memorize: You can use your previous knowledge to answer this question.
2. Plugging this prefix into words we already know: In this case, we could think of another word with “micro-” such as “microorganism” or “microscope.”
Extract the prefix “micro-” and think what the relationship is between an organism and a microorganism or a scope and a microscope.
Which of the following is the meaning of the prefix “micro-?”
A. across
B. small
C. middle
D. one, singular
Correct answer: small
across: The prefix for “across” is “trans-”, like in the word “transport,” which means “to carry across.”
middle: The prefix for “middle” is “meso-”, like in the word “mesoderm,” which refers to the middle germ/skin layer.
one, singular: The prefix for “one, singular” is “mono-”, like in the word “monotone,” which means sounding the same (one sound).
Question Type 2: With context clues
Our second sample question is an example with context clues. Read the question and the answer options first.
Here, you get a great view of how root words (“meter” as a distance) and prefixes (“kilo”) work together to form “kilometer.” For this question, you are also given a sentence. “He walked one kilometer until he found a gas station.” Therefore, we are reassured that this is asking for a distance and we can use this information to help inform our decision.
He walked one kilometer until he found a gas station.
Which of the following phrases defines the word “kilometer” based on the meaning of the prefix “kilo-”?
A. One tenth of a meter
B. Ten meters
C. One thousand meters
D. One hundred meters
Correct answer: one thousand meters
One tenth of a meter: One-tenth of a meter is a centimeter. “Centi-” is a prefix that means “one tenth.”
If you know the metric system, you can use inductive reasoning to cross off answer choice A because we know that one tenth of a meter is a very short distance and that would not be a walk to a gas station.
Ten meters: Ten meters is a dekameter. “Deka-” is the prefix that means “ten.”
One hundred meters: One hundred meters is a hectometer. “Hecto-” is the prefix that means “one-hundred.”
If you’ve ever run track and field, the hectometer is the straightaway on the track.
How to study and prepare for the prefix questions on the TEAS VI exam:
Option 1: Study and memorize prefixes and their meanings.
● This will be most helpful in questions without context clues.
● We have put a helpful list and flashcards as an attachment to this lesson to help you.
Option 2: “Plugging” this prefix into words you are already familiar with.
● If we are asked to define the common prefix “inter-,” you can place it with a word you are familiar with, like “interact” or “interpret.”
● By analyzing how the prefix “inter-” changes/alters the meaning of “act” or “pret,” you can figure out what the prefix means.
○ “Act” is to “take action or do something” and “interact” is to “act in a way as to have an effect on another.” Therefore, “inter-” means “with others.”
By using a combination of these two strategies, we are able to tackle prefix questions.
Practice Question 1: No Context Clues
Remember to use your strategies! (Study and Memorize or Plug It In)
Which of the following is the meaning of the prefix “mortis-”?
A. Round
B. Single/Alone
C. Death
D. Life
Correct answer: death
Without context clues we may have studied and memorized the meaning of the prefix or plugged it into words we already know like a “mortician.” ]
Round: The prefix for round is “circum-,” like the distance around a circle is the circumference.
Single/Alone: The prefix for single/alone is “mono-.” If you are monolingual, then you know one language.
Death: The prefix for death is “mortis-.” This is the correct answer!
A mortician is someone that works with dead bodies.
Life: The prefix for life is “bio-,” as in biology which is the study of life.
Practice Question 2: No Context Clues
Which of the following is the meaning of the prefix “auto-”?
A. Self
B. Before
C. Alike
D. Against/Opposite
Correct answer: self
→ Thought Process:
Use the Plug It In strategy. I think of an automatic car. One that goes from park to neutral to drive. Automatic cars are simple to drive. I have friends that drive manual cars and they do a lot of work while they are driving, shifting from gear to gear. I think of an automatic car as something that works on itself or on its own.
Self: The prefix for self is “auto-.” This is the correct answer!
Examples of “auto-” include the automatic car or autonomous robot – a robot that works on its own.
Before: The prefix for before is “pre-,” like pretest, an assessment you take before the test.
Alike: The prefix for alike is “homo-,” like homogenous, which means having the same characteristics.
Against/Opposite: The prefix for against/opposite is “contra-/contro-,” like contradict, which means to say something that’s the opposite or controversial, which means something that can give rise to disagreement.
Practice Question 3: Word Meaning
Based on the meaning of the prefix “a-/an-”, what is the meaning of the word “amoral”?
A. Before morals
B. Between morals
C. With morals
D. Without or lacking morals
Correct answer: without or lacking morals
→ Thought Process: Instead of looking for the definition of the prefix we are looking at the meaning of the word that contains that prefix. Each answer choice includes the word morals, so we will not focus on that word. Instead, we will focus on the word/s that comes before that word.
➢ Other words that include the prefix a-/an- include anemic or atheist.
Before morals: The prefixes that mean before are “ante-” and “pre-,” so words that mean before morals would be antemoral or premoral (not commonly utilized English terms).
Between morals: The prefix that means between in “inter-.” There are no words in the English language for intermorals or intermorality. (Example of inter- is interact.)
With moral: With morals is morals or morality with no prefix. There is no word for saying ‘with morals’ or ‘having morals’ and does not change the definition.
Without or lacking morals: The prefix “a-” and “an-” mean without. Without morals is amoral. This is the correct answer!
Remember to use your strategies! (Study and Memorize or Plug It In)
Practice Question 4: With Context Clues
We got a sneak preview of the show on Thursday, it looks riveting!
Which of the following defines the prefix “pre-” based on the meaning of the word “preview”?
A. After
B. Before
C. A summary of
D. Down/Off/Away from
Correct answer: before
→ Thought Process: If you know the definition of “pre” then plug it in and answer the question. If you do not know the meaning of “pre” the sentence in the question gives us a lot of great information to use to answer the question.
● If something is a sneak or sneak preview, we might think of something that happened before the show’s release date.
After: The prefix for after is “post-,” like a postseason, which happens after the season is over. It refers to something we have already experienced.
Before: The prefix for before is “pre-,” so this is the correct answer!
A summary of: The prefix for a summary of is “over-,” like overview, meaning a quick look at the entire story or plotline. This lesson provides an overview of prefixes and their meanings.
Down/Off/Away from: The prefix for down/off/away from is “de-” like devalue, meaning to take away or bring down the value of.
Practice Question 5: With Context Clues
Robert was worried about the abnormal bump on his arm.
Which of the following defines the prefix “ab-” based on the meaning of the word “abnormal”?
A. Beyond/past/ by
B. Apart/away from
C. Life
D. Put into/cover with
Correct answer: apart/away from
→ Thought Process: We already understand the meaning of the word normal as something that regularly happens. We can keep this in mind while trying to find the correct answer.
Beyond/ past/ by: Beyond/ past/ by is the definition of the prefix “para-,” as in the word paranormal, which means something that goes beyond understanding (that which is normal). Paranormal might refer to ghosts or spirits that we might associate with Halloween or scary stories.
Apart/ away from: Apart/ away from is the definition of the prefix “ab-,” this is the correct answer!
Life: Life is the definition of the prefix “bio-,” like in the word biography, or the story of one’s life.
Put into/ cover with: The prefix for put into/ cover with is “en-” like enclose, meaning to put into a casing or enclosure.
Practice Question 6: With Context Clues
The organism can’t be seen by the naked eye, measuring at less than seven microns in length.
Which of the following defines the word “micron” based on the meaning of the prefix “micro-”?
A. Large unit of measure
B. Small unit of measure
C. Single unit of measure
D. Length of measure
Correct answer: small unit of measure
→ Thought Process: We are able to use the sentence to help us in answering the question.
The organism can’t be seen by the naked eye – meaning that if it is on a table in front of me and I look down at it, I am not going to be able to see it no matter how close I get to my table.
We can use deductive reasoning to answer this question. If we know that the organism cannot be seen by the naked eye and that you would need a microscope to see it, we know the organism is micro- or very small.
Large unit of measure: Large is the definition of the prefix “macro-,” like as in macromolecules, which means large molecules. This is not a term used in common English. We might use the term macroeconomics which is the part of economics concerned with large-scale or general economic factors or macrophotography which makes small things seem really large.
Small unit of measure: Small is the definition of the prefix “micro-.” This is the correct answer!
Single unit of measure: Single is the definition of the prefix “mono-,” like in monochromatic, which means having one color like a black and white photo.
Length of measure: There are no prefixes for the word “length.”
Great work! Go take the quiz!