Forming Words with the Suffix

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Questions and Answers

Which of the following suffixes is used to create adjectives?

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What does the adjective 'remarkable' mean?

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Which of the following words is NOT formed with the suffix -able?

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What does the prefix 're-' imply in words like 'retry' and 'reconsider'?

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Which word would be formed by adding the suffix -al to 'instruction'?

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What does the suffix '-ate' typically do to a word?

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Which word from the text uses the '-ate' suffix to mean 'making something whole or total'?

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Which word from the text uses the '-ate' suffix to mean 'freeing or setting someone or something free'?

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What does 'decimate' mean in the context of ancient Rome?

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What does 'indoctrinate' mean based on its etymology?

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What does the word 'motivate' mean based on its Latin root 'movere'?

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Which word describes someone who is full of fear?

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Which word signifies being full of vengeance or resentment?

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What does 'Wonderful' mean based on its parts in the text?

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In the text, which word indicates being full of hope or optimism?

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'Mournful' refers to being extremely sorrowful or grieving based on its components. Which other word could be similarly formed and has the similar meaning?

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To _______ means to make something work or operate

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To _______ someone means to give them a reason to do something

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The word 'liberate' means to set someone free from a _______ situation

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We use 'situate' to describe where something is _______

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Match the following suffixes with their meanings:

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Match the following prefixes with their meanings:

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Match the following words with their definitions based on the text:

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Match the following words with their meanings based on the text:

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Study Notes

Word Formation and Etymology

A word can be separated into different parts, e.g., 'publicate' and 'publish'.
'Aggregate' comes from 'greg', meaning a flock or group, and describes something formed by adding together smaller parts.
'Activate' comes from 'act', meaning to do something, and means to make something work or operate.
'Certificate' comes from 'certify', meaning to state that something is true or correct, and is a written statement to confirm this.
'Indoctrinate' comes from 'doctrine', meaning a system of ideas or beliefs, and means to teach someone to accept these ideas completely.
'Decimate' comes from 'decem', meaning ten, and originally meant to kill every tenth soldier as a punishment.
'Liberate' comes from 'liber', meaning free, and means to set someone free from a situation.
'Motivate' comes from 'movere', meaning move, and means to give someone a reason to do something.
'Situate' comes from 'situs', meaning position, and is used to describe where something is located.

Suffixes -able and -ate

The suffix -able forms an adjective, e.g., 'value + able = valuable', 'comfort + able = comfortable'.
Examples of -able words: 'remarkable', 'reasonable', 'respectable'.
The suffix -ate forms a verb, e.g., 'graduate', 'separate', 'publicate', 'activate', 'certificate', 'indoctrinate', 'decimate', 'liberate', 'motivate', 'situate'.
A graduate with moderate knowledge of Latin, Greek, and Hebrew can separate the words into their original form.

Suffix -al

The suffix -al forms an adjective, e.g., 'educational', 'medical', 'animal', 'instructional', 'personal'.
Examples of words based on the root 'person': 'personify', 'impersonal', 'persona', 'personable', 'personality', 'personally', 'interpersonal', 'personnel'.

Suffix -ful

The suffix -ful forms an adjective, e.g., 'hopeful', 'tearful', 'colourful', 'powerful', 'wonderful', 'mournful', 'fearful', 'vengeful', 'grateful'.
Examples of -ful words: 'awful', 'faithful'.### Word Origins
The word "publicate" is an alternate spelling of "publish".
"Aggregate" originates from "greg", meaning a flock or group, and refers to something formed by adding together smaller parts.
"Activate" comes from "act", meaning to do something, and means to make something work or operate.

Certificate and Indoctrination

"Certificate" originates from "certify", meaning to state that something is true or correct, and refers to a written statement confirming this.
"Indoctrinate" originates from "doctrine", meaning a system of ideas or beliefs, and means to teach someone to accept these ideas completely, without questioning them.

Punishment and Liberation

"Decimate" originates from "decem", meaning ten, and initially referred to killing every tenth soldier as a punishment; today, it means to kill or destroy a large proportion of something.
"Liberate" originates from "liber", meaning free, and means to set someone free from a situation, especially a political one.

Motivation and Location

"Motivate" originates from "movere", meaning move, and means to give someone a reason to do something.
"Situate" originates from "situs", meaning position, and is used to describe where something is located.