Academic Vocabulary: Academic Words - Olsen Amy E. 2012

Chapter 16. Word Parts III

Look for words with these prefixes, roots, and/or suffixes as you work through this book. You may have already seen some of them, and you will see others in later chapters. Learning basic word parts can help you figure out the meanings of unfamiliar words.

prefix: a word part added to the beginning of a word that changes the meaning of the root

root: a word's basic part with its essential meaning

suffix: a word part added to the end of a word; indicates the part of speech

Self-Tests

1 Read each definition, and choose the appropriate word. Use each word once. The meaning of the word part is underlined to help you make the connection. Refer to the Word Parts list if you need help.

1. the process of making something safe ...

2. starlike ...

3. lasting 100 years ...

4. to give out ...

5. a person trained to work next to a lawyer or teacher ...

6. to draw or pull out ...

7. the change in location of a disease in the body ...

8. having many skills ...

9. to change a penalty to a less severe form ...

10. the following of one thing after another ...

2 Finish the sentences with the meaning of each word part. Use each meaning once. The word part is underlined to help you make the connection.

Vocabulary list

asteroid

secure

distribute

multitalented

paraprofessional

commute

sequence

centennial

abstract

metastasis

Vocabulary list

draw

year

many

resemble

give

change

process

follow

almost

changes

1. Androids are popular characters in science fiction movies because they ... human beings; therefore, they are easy to costume.

2. The mutant ant was able to carry twice as much as a normal ant. The ... made it a valuable addition to the colony.

3. I attribute much of my success as a musician to my fifth-grade music teacher; I ... him credit for teaching me about the discipline of practicing and the beauty of creating new sounds.

4. The sequel continues to ... Nita's adventures, but now she is three years older and entering college.

5. My paraphrase was ... like the original quote, but I made sure to use enough of my own words and style to avoid plagiarizing.

6. I was able to procure the special chocolates my husband-likes, but the ... wasn't easy. I had to call ten places to find where I could order them.

7. I like the way the writer uses a metaphor to compare the woman's face to a banana. The way he ... the usual use of the word banana clearly shows that the woman has a long, thin face.

8. My husband usually forgets our anniversary, but he remembered this ... .

9. The store was able to ... me in with an attractive window display.

10. Because I work for a multinational corporation, I could be transferred to ... countries.

3 Finish the story using the word parts. Use each word part once. Your knowledge of word parts, as well as the context clues, will help you create the correct words. If you do not understand the meaning of a word you have made, check the dictionary for the definition or to see whether the word exists.

Word parts list

multi

meta

sequ

para

trib

mut

oid

tract

ann

ure

The Baking Battle

It was time for the town's (1)...ual cooking contests, and this year I was going to par­ticipate for the third time. This year I was going to con(2)...ute my extraordinary brown­ies. I was paran(3)... that someone would discover my secret ingredients, so when I went shopping for them, I bought fifty other items. No one who saw me at the store would be able to figure out which ingredients were going into the brownies. My brownies had gone through several per(4)...ations over the years, but I now felt they were perfect. I carefully followed the proced(5)... I had established for mak­ing the ultimate brownie. The whole process had to be just right. Finally, the brownies were ready for their (6)...morphosis. Into the oven they went to change from sticky batter to delicious delights.

In the afternoon, I took my brownies to the judging area. There I met my other competi­tors. I was upset to see June Elaine with a pan of brownies. She had won so many times in (7)...ple categories, including cakes, casseroles, and wheat breads. She even won the chili cook-off one year. The judges tasted all fifteen entries twice. Then they adjourned to another room to discuss their choices. They still hadn't emerged after thirty minutes. I thought they were trying to pro(8)... the suspense, but I didn't need them to draw it out any longer. I was so nervous. They finally came out and said, "We have an unusual situation this year. We have been unable to decide between two of the entries. Con(9)...ently, we are going to break with tradition and give two first place awards." I held my breath. I was one of the winners! The other, of course, was June Elaine. I didn't care that we both won first place. I was actually proud to have my brownies in the same league as hers. I even hoped that my entries from now on would (10)...llel her success.

4 Pick the best definition for each underlined word using your knowledge of word parts. Circle the word part in each of the underlined words.

a. the process of expressing disapproval

b. resembling the truth but unproven

c. a quality given to a person or thing

d. unchangeable

e. a person who changes a literary work from one form to another

f. beyond the usual

g. a comment that doesn't follow the preceding one

h. to draw away

i. happening every two years

j. involving the use of many methods of communication

1. The Internet has helped to spread several factoids; people read the same stories about killer bananas or ways to earn thousands of dollars and think the stories are real.

2. Mina is studying paranormal activities, such as clairvoyance and extrasensory perception.

3. I enjoyed the multimedia presentation. The use of various types of visuals and sounds made the presentation extremely interesting.

4. The board had to censure the secretary for putting inappropriate remarks in the minutes.

5. An attribute that immediately comes to mind when I think of Carol is friendliness.

6. Unfortunately, Verda was immutable about her vacation plans, and she went to the moun­tains to ski even though there wasn't any snow.

7. I found it hard to understand the speaker because his speech was filled with one non sequitur after another. His ideas just didn't connect.

8. The Olympics are a biennial celebration of athletics worldwide.

9. I put the rusted statue in the garage; now it won't detract from the appeal of the house.

10. My uncle is a metaphrast; he changes short stories into poems.

5 A good way to remember word parts is to pick one word that uses a word part and understand how that word part functions in the word. Then you can apply that meaning to other words that have the same word part. Use the words to help you match the word part to its meaning.

Set One

1. multi-: multitude, multiply, multifaceted

2. meta-: metamorphosis, metaphor, metabolism

3. -tract-: abstract, tractor, attractive

4. -sequ-: sequential, sequel, consequence

5. -oid: humanoid, paranoid, android

a. to follow

b. change

c. many, much

d. to drag, to pull, to draw

e. like, resembling

Set Two

6. para-: parallel, parasite, paranormal

7. -trib-: tribute, contribute, attribute

8. -mot-: permutation, commute, mutation

9. -ann, -enn-: annals, anniversary, perennial

10. -ore: procure, failure, procedure

f. give

g. year

h. action or process

i. change

j. next to, almost, beyond, abnormal

Interactive Exercise

Use the dictionary to find a word you don't know that uses each word part listed below. Write the meaning of the word part, the word, and the definition. If your dictionary has the etymology (history) of the word, see how the word part relates to the meaning, and write the etymology after the definition.

Match each photograph to one of the word parts below, and write the meaning of the word part.

multi-

-mut-

-sequ-

-tract-

-oid

Internet Activity: For Further Reading and Research

When the readings in this text capture your attention, turn to the Internet for mote information. When you see a vocabulary word you have been studying on a Web site, note how it is used. You will also likely come across new words where you can practice your context-clue skills to discover a meaning. Here are a few sites to get you started in your quest for further information.

For more on immigration, Genghis Khan, the Mayans, Julius Caesar, Karl Marx, or the former Soviet Union, try historychannel.com. At the History Channel's Web site, type in the time period, person, or event that interests you, and you will find a wide choice of articles to click on.

For science information, visit National Geographic magazine at nationalgeographic.com or the Discovery Channel site at discovery.com. For technology information, try the site for Wired magazine: wired.com.

To explore the art and entertainment worlds, try salon.com for articles on a variety of creative interests from art to movies.

For a list of challenging words, several of which you are learning in this text, and how many times a word has appeared in the New York Times in the past year with an example of the word in context, visit nytimes.com/learning/students/wordofday.

For dictionary entries, a word-of-the-day feature, and word-related games, give the Merriam-Webster Online dictionary at m-w.com a look.

Marking Words When Reading

When you read for fun, it can be counterproductive to stop and look up every word you don't know-you will become frustrated with reading instead of enjoying it. As this book advocates, looking for context clues is the best way to find the meaning of an unknown word, but sometimes this method doesn't work. There are various ways of keeping track of unfamiliar words; try these methods to see which fits your style.

✵ Keep a piece of paper and a pen next to you, and write down the word and page number.

✵ Keep a piece of paper next to you, and rip it into small pieces or use sticky notes. Put a piece between the pages where the word you don't know is located. For added help, write the word on the paper.

✵ If the book belongs to you, circle the words you don't know and flip through the book later to find them.

✵ If the book belongs to you, dog-ear the page (turn the corner down) where the word you don't know is located. This method is useful when you don't have paper or a pen handy.

✵ Repeat the word and page number to yourself a few times. Try to connect the page number to a date to help you remember it.

When you are done reading for the day, get your dictionary and look up the words you marked. The last two methods work best if you don't read many pages before you look up the words or if there are only a few words you don't know. Using these methods will help you learn new words without harming the fun of reading. Note: If you come across a word you don't know several times and not knowing its meaning hinders your understanding of what is going on, then it's a good idea to stop and look up the word.