Exploring vocabulary - Muschla Gary R. 2012

Heading south
Suffixes, II

A suffix is a word part added to the end of a base word or root. A suffix adds to the meaning of the word. Following are some common suffixes and their meanings:

1. government (n): a system for ruling a nation, state, city, or town

Our government protects the rights of its citizens.

2. childish (adj): behaving like a child; immature; silly

Peter’s childish behavior is not amusing.

3. kindness (n): friendly or helpful behavior; goodness

Everyone respects Mr. Smith because of his kindness.

4. enormous (adj): very big; gigantic; huge

The mountain was enormous.

5. sadness (n): sorrow; grief; unhappiness

The movie’s tragic ending filled me with sadness.

6. enjoyment (n): pleasure; satisfaction

Tom’s enjoyment of the game was capped by his team winning.

7. sunny (adj): bright with sunshine

The day of our family picnic was warm and sunny.

8. selfish (adj): thinking of oneself; having no care for others

The little girl was selfish and would not share her toys.

9. agreement (n): an understanding or arrangement between people

The boys and girls reached an agreement to share the soccer field during recess.

10. joyous (n): very happy; cheerful; glad

Having our lost dog returned to us made the day joyous for our family.

Vocabulary tip

Some suffixes change a word’s part of speech. For example, the suffix -ish added to the noun child makes the adjective childish.

19.1 Heading south

West Quoddy Head, Maine, is the easternmost point of the United States. The northernmost spot is Point Barrow, Alaska. The westernmost point is Cape Wrangell, Alaska. What is the southernmost point of the United States?

To answer the question, find the word or phrase that has a similar meaning to each word below. Choose your answers from the words or phrases after each word. Write the letter of each answer in the space above the word’s number at the bottom of the page. One letter is provided.

1. enormous:

E. pleasure

A. gigantic

O. silly

2. sunny:

I. satisfaction

E. friendly

A. bright with sunshine

3. agreement:

A. argument

Y. happiness

E. an arrangement

4. kindness:

A. goodness

O. silliness

U. gladness

5. enjoyment:

K. pleasure

E. friendly behavior

L. understanding

6. selfish:

E. satisfaction

N. very big

I. thinking of oneself

7. government:

A. a company

H. system for ruling

F. president

8. sadness:

L. gigantic

R. immature

W. sorrow

9. childish:

I. silly

O. gladness

A. not caring

10. joyous:

H. immature

M. risky

L. very happy