Today we're going to talk about some of the prefixes we use rather thoughtlessly in English, without ever really knowing what they mean. What's a "prefix"? The prefix of the word autobiography is auto. It's the bit at the beginning.
This list is by no means comprehensive, but does give guidance on a few tricky ones we may not be using properly. All examples taken from the Oxford University Press "A-Z of Grammar and Punctuation".
This list is by no means comprehensive, but does give guidance on a few tricky ones we may not be using properly. All examples taken from the Oxford University Press "A-Z of Grammar and Punctuation".
PREFIX a- ante- arch- circum- crypto- hyper- intra- mal- mis- neo- out- over- para- para- pro- supra- sur- tele- uni- | MEANING not, not affected by before chief around hidden very big inside bad(ly) wrong, false new beyond too much ancillary beyond deputy above more than, beyond at a distance one | EXAMPLE amoral antecedent arch-rival circumference crypto-fascist hypermarket intravenous malnourished mistake NEO-The One (sorry...) neolithic outreach overreach paramedic paranormal proconsul supraorbital surreal television unitary |
Not bad, eh? Who knew "crypto-" meant "hidden"? I didn't. Well, I sort of did, because I just wrote this piece, but you know what I mean.