Noun formation

Noun formation
Suffixes

Suffixes can change word classes and the meaning of particular

words. In English, there are several common noun suffixes.

SUFFIX –ER
Meaning: person who performs an activity.
Examples: writer, teacher,…

SUFFIX –OR
Meaning: person who performs an activity.
Examples: actor, supervisor,…
 Noun formation
Suffixes

SUFFIX –ER/ –OR

Meaning: things which do a particular job.
Examples: pencil-sharpener, projector,…

SUFFIX –EE
Meaning: person who experiences an action.
Examples: employee, referee, …

SUFFIX –(T)ION
Meaning: action expressed by the original verb.
Examples: admission, addiction, …
 Noun formation
Suffixes

SUFFIX –IST
Meaning: person who performs on activity, who has
an ideology or who plays a musical instrument.
Examples: artist, columnist, pianist, …

SUFFIX –ISM
Meaning: activity or ideology.
Examples: consumerism, cosmopolitanism, …

SUFFIX –NESS
Meaning: quality expressed by the original adjective.
Examples: politeness, happiness, …
 Noun formation
Suffixes and word classes

SUFFIX WORD EXAMPLE SUFFIX WORD EXAMPLE

CLASS CLASS
–ment noun excitement –al adjective legal
–ity noun productivity –ous adjective delicious
–hood noun childhood –ful adjective useful
–ship noun friendship –less adjective useless
–ive adjective active –ify verb beautify

The informal suffix –ish can be added to most adjectives, ages and
times to make them less precise.
Meet me at about eightish.
Fill in the gaps adding the correct suffix to the words in
brackets.

1. James is a wonderful TV host on CNN. He has become an

moderator (moderate).
awesome ____________

2. My sister performs at the Royal Albert Hall tonight. She is a renowned

____________
cellist conductor (conduct) too.
(cello) and a great ____________

weakness (weak)!
3. It might be seen as a sign of ____________

4. My guests are usually funny people, but Julia is by far the most
invitee
hilarious ____________ (invite) of the night.
 Noun formation
Prefixes

A prefix changes the meaning of the word that follows it.

PREFIX ANTI– PREFIX AUTO–

Meaning: against Meaning: by oneseff
Example: antisocial Example: autograph

PREFIX BI– PREFIX EX–

Meaning: two, twice Meaning: former
Example: bilingual Example: ex-student

PREFIX MICRO– PREFIX PSEUDO–

Meaning: small Meaning: false
Example: microscopic Example: pseudo-intellectual
 Noun formation
Prefixes

PREFIX MIS– PREFIX MONO–

Meaning: badly / wrongly Meaning: one / single
Example: misunderstand Example: monotonous

PREFIX OVER– PREFIX POST–

Meaning: too much Meaning: after
Example: overdo Example: postgraduate

PREFIX PRO– PREFIX RE–

Meaning: in favour of Meaning: again or back
Example: proactive Example: rewind
 Noun formation
Prefixes

PREFIX SEMI– PREFIX SUB–

Meaning: half Meaning: under
Example: semiconscious Example: subway

PREFIX UNDER–
Meaning: not enough
Example: underachiever
BEWARE!
-In- becomes -im before a word beginning with “m” or “p”, i.e.
immature, impatient.
-In- becomes ir- before a word beginning with “r”, i.e. irreplaceable.
-Il- comes before a word beginning with “l”, i.e. illegal.
-Un- and dis- can also form opposites of verbs, e.g. disapprove,
dislike, undo or unveil.
Fill in the gaps adding the correct prefix to the words in
brackets.

1. If your computer is infected with virus, you should remove it

antivirus
immediately with an ____________ (virus).

binoculars (oculars) instead of the telescope.

2. You may use the ____________
The event is as obvious as the full moon.

semiautomatic (automatic) devices.

3. He works with manual and ____________

underlying
4. Is this the most important question, or is there an ____________
(lying) question?