Root Words Word Search
This Root Words word search hides 12 words on a 15×15 grid — the terms and ideas of a school subject. Trace each one with a finger or mouse and it locks in as soon as the whole word is covered. No signup, no download.
Words to find: PREFIX, SUFFIX, BASE, ROOT, MORPHEME, ETYMOLOGY, LATIN, GREEK, DERIVATION, AFFIX, COMPOUND, INFLEXION.
Words run in any of eight directions, backwards included — if one refuses to turn up, try reading the grid right to left.
Root Words word list, defined
- PREFIX /ˈpriːfɪks/ · noun
- A prefix is a word or group of letters placed at the beginning of another word to modify its meaning or function. In language, it may indicate negation, tense, degree, affiliation, or another grammatical relationship. Related: affix, initial, word element, bounding form.
- SUFFIX /ˈsʌfɪks/ · noun
- A suffix is a letter or group of letters added to the end of a word to form another word or a particular grammatical form. The word “happy,” for example, has the suffix “-ly,” which changes it into an adverb. Related: ending, final element, terminal element.
- BASE /beɪs/ · noun, verb, adjective
- The lowest part or foundation of something on which it stands or is built; also, a starting point or underlying support for an idea, activity, or system. Related: foundation, footing, basis, groundwork.
- ROOT /ruːt/ · noun, verb
- The root of a plant is the underground structure that anchors it and absorbs water and minerals. By extension, a root is a source, origin, or fundamental cause from which something develops. Related: origin, source, basis, foundation.
- MORPHEME /ˈmɔːfiːz/ · noun
- The smallest meaningful or grammatically functional unit of language, such as a word, prefix, or suffix. A morpheme may be free, like “book,” or bound, like the prefix “un-” in “unhappy.” Related: linguistic unit, meaningful unit, grammatical unit, minimal unit.
- ETYMOLOGY /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ · noun
- The study of the origin of words and the way in which their meanings have changed throughout history. It can also refer to the origin and historical development of a particular word itself. Related: word origin, derivation, root, source.
- GREEK /ɡriːk/ · noun, adjective, verb
- Greek, normally capitalized, refers to Greece, its people, its language, or anything characteristic of its culture. In the expression “all Greek to me,” it means unintelligible or unfamiliar. Related: Hellenic, Grecian, Graecian.
- DERIVATION /ˌdɛrɪˈveɪʃən/ · noun
- The process of obtaining or developing something from a source or origin; in linguistics, the formation of a new word from an existing one, typically by adding affixes. Related: origin, source, descent, derivation process.
- AFFIX /ˈæfɪks/ · noun, verb
- An affix is a word element — such as a prefix or suffix — attached to the beginning or end of a base word or root to form a new word. As a verb, to affix means to attach or fasten something physically to another object. Related: append, attach, addition, fasten.
- COMPOUND /ˈkɒm.paʊnd/ (noun, adjective); /kəmˈpaʊnd/ (verb) · noun, verb, adjective
- As a noun, a compound is a thing made up of two or more parts combined into a whole, especially a chemical substance formed of two or more elements. As a verb, to compound means to make a problem or situation worse, or to combine things together. Related: combination, mixture, blend, composite.
- INFLEXION /ɪnˈflɛkʃən/ · noun
- Inflexion is a change in the form of a word, especially a change to its ending that marks a grammatical distinction such as number, tense, or case. In mathematics, it also refers to a point where a curve changes from concave to convex or vice versa. Related: inflection, flexion, declension.
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