The Most Common Prefixes in English

• meaning: against, the opposite
• example: Is this antivirus good for my computer?
• other examples: antibiotic, antisocial, antipathy

3. be-

• meaning: by, to turn someone into
• example: Today’s actions bespeak a bright future.
• other examples: below, bestand, belittle

4. bi-

• meaning: two
• example: This competition will be held biannually by our company.
• other examples: bilingual, bicameral, biped

5. co-

• meaning: together, mutually
• example: Don’t worry about him! He will cooperate sooner or later.
• other examples: coexist, co-pilot, cohabit

6. contra-

• meaning: against
• example: He knows he is not allowed to park here, but contrariwise, he always does it.
• other examples: contraindicate, contradict, contravention

7. de-

• meaning: opposite
• example: Fruit help you detoxify your body.
• other examples: deactivate, decontaminate, degrade

8. dis-

• meaning: negation, removal
• example: He is so disobedient to his mother!
• other examples: disagree, disappear, disconnect

9. em-

• meaning: to cause, to put in
• example: My parents got emotional during the play.
• other examples: embrace, embarrassment, emphasize

10. en-

• meaning: to cause, to put in
• example: This University provide scholarships that enable good students to continue with their education.
• other examples: encourage, enlighten, enlist

Attention: there is a difference between enable and unable:

• enable is a verb: to allow, to authorize
• unable is an adjective: not able to do something

11. ex-

• meaning: out of, previous
• example: Her ex-husband is working with us.
• other examples: exterritorial, ex-wife, exclude

12. hyper-

• meaning: more than normal
• example: Your medical examination didn’t show any signs of hypertension.
• other examples: hypersensitive, hyperative, hyperglycemia

13. il-, im-, ir-

• meaning: not, without
• example: Driving without a licence is illegal.

     It’s impossible to pass this exam without learning.

     You were so irresponsible when you were a kid!

• other examples: illogical, illusion, illegible, immature, impolite, immoral, irregular, irrational, irreplaceable.

14. in-

• meaning: not, in, into
• example: My son is insecure about his future.
• other examples: incorect, incomplete, influence.

15. inter-

• meaning: between, among
• example: Many international conferences are held in Bucharest this year.
• other examples: intergalactic, interrupt, intermediate

16. mid-

• meaning: middle
• example: The village is midway between Edinburgh and London.
• other examples: midday, midnight, midterm

17. mis-

• meaning: wrong
• example: All this is a misunderstanding. I haven’t ordered anything!
• other examples: mislead, misbehave, mistake

18. non-

• meaning: not, without
• example: This is a non-profit organization.
• other examples: nonsense, non-smoker, nonstop

19. out-

• meaning: more than
• example: My girl may or may not outgrow her interest in cooking.
• other examples: outnumber, outwit, outcome

20. over-

• meaning: too much, excessively
• example: I forgot to stop the oven so the chicken was overcooked and dry.
• other examples: overwork, overrate, overlook

21. pro-

• meaning: in favour of, forward
• example: We have a pro-democracy policy.
• other examples: probable, proceed, pro-communist

22. re-

• meaning: again
• example: You should reconsider our work proposal.
• other examples: rewrite, return, rename

23. sub-

• meaning: under
• example: Subway is crowded in the mornings.
• other examples: submit, submarine, submission

24. un-

• meaning: not, reverse, remove
• example: Tom is very unhappy since he lost his job.
• other examples: unpack, unreal, unlikely, undo

25. under-

• meaning: below, down, less than
• example: Our old house had an underground passage.
• other examples: underwater, undercooked, underestimate

 

26. up-

• meaning: move higher, upgrade something and also expresses being happier (upbeat, uplifted)
• example: Go upstairs and change your clothes!
• other examples: upload, update, upstanding