Semantics, Morphemes, Lexicology ,Suffix & Infix

What is semantics?

Semantics is the study of meaning. It is a wide subject within the general study of language. An understanding of semantics is essential to the study of language acquisition (how language users acquire a sense of meaning, as speakers and writers, listeners and readers) and of language change (how meanings alter over time). It is important for understanding language in social contexts, as these are likely to affect meaning, and for understanding varieties of English and effects of style. It is thus one of the most fundamental concepts in linguistics. The study of semantics includes the study of how meaning is constructed, interpreted, clarified, obscured, illustrated, simplified negotiated, contradicted and paraphrased.

Lexicology is the study of lexis or stock of words in a language. We will also use the word vocabulary interchangeably with lexis. Take note that lexis and vocabulary are non-count nouns (although occasionally, you could talk about vocabularies, this would be unusual); if you need to refer to individual items, you should talk about lexical items or vocabulary items. You might also encounter the term lexicon, which (unfortunately) can be used in a couple of ways; firstly, it can be used as a more technical version of lexis; many people use it synonymously with dictionary. What must be remembered is that any dictionary can never be comprehensive in its listing of the lexis of a particular language. (You might also encounter the term lexicography which is the study of dictionaries.)

We have used the word word extensively, and there is a commonsensical obviousness to it. At this stage we will take the orthographic definition of word, and say that it is an item that, in writing, is usually separated from other items by a space. Another issue that sometimes arises is whether bring and brought are two separate words. We shall say that they are two separate word-forms, but that they represent one lexeme.

In linguistics, a morpheme is the smallest component of word, or other linguistic unit, that has semantic meaning. The term is used as part of the branch of linguistics known as morpheme-based morphology. A morpheme is composed by phoneme(s) (the smallest linguistically distinctive units of sound) in spoken language, and by grapheme(s) (the smallest units of written language) in written language.

The concept of word and morpheme are different, a morpheme may or may not stand alone. One or several morphemes compose a word. A morpheme is free if it can stand alone (ex: "one", "possible"), or bound if it is used exclusively alongside a free morpheme (ex: "im" in impossible). Its actual phonetic representation is the morph, with the different morphs ("in-", "im-") representing the same morpheme being grouped as its allomorphs.

English example:

The word "unbreakable" has three morphemes: "un-", a bound morpheme; "break", a free morpheme; and "-able", a free morpheme. "un-" is also a prefix, "-able" is a suffix. Both "un-" and "-able" are affixes.

The morpheme plural-s has the morph "-s", /s/, in cats (/kæts/), but "-es", /ɨz/, in dishes (/dɪʃɨz/), and even the voiced "-s", /z/, in dogs (/dɒɡz/). "-s". These are allomorphs.

A suffix is an affix that is added to the end of a word that conditions its usage or meaning. The opposite of suffix is prefix.

suffix Meaning Samples

Suffix	General Meaning	Example
-agogy	leading	pedagogy , demagogy
-archy	rule, leadership	gynarchy , anarchy
-cele, -coele, -coel	body cavity	mucocoel or mucocoele
-cele	tumor, hernia	hydatidocele
-centesis	puncturing	amniocentesis , rachicentesis
-chondrion	small grainlike structure	mitochondrion
-cide	murder, killing agent	suicide , vespacide, regicide
-cracy	rule, government	kakistocracy , democracy , androcracy
-cycle	circle, cycle, unit of radio frequency	epicycle , hydrocycle
-ectasia, -ectasis	stretching out	brochiectasis , telangiectasia
-ectomy	surgical removal	laryngectomy , vasectomy
-emesis	vomiting	hematemesis , hyperemesis
-emia	blood condition	leukemia , anaemia
-enchyma	cellular tissue	mesenchyma , karyenchyma
-ess	female	actress , waitress , stewardess
-esthesis, -esthesia	sensation, feeling	synesthesia, kinesthesis
-fugal	fuge, driving or travelling away from, expelling	centrifugal
-ful	full of, having some or much	hopeful , useful
-hedron	geometric solid	icosahedron , tetrahedron
-holic	love , addiction	alcoholic
-ic
-id	skin rash	syphilid
-ism	doctrine, act, practice, condition	Protestantism , alcoholism , Buddhism , southernism
-ist	person	dentist
-itis	disease, inflammation	hepatitis , gingivitis
-itude		attitude , certitude
-ium	metallic element (exception: helium)	sodium , Calcium
-kinesis	movement (ability thereof)	telekinesis
-less	lack of	homeless , useless
-ly	-like, having the attributes of; In modern English, primarily changes adjectives to adverbs; also changes some nouns to adjectives and some (past-tense) verbs to adverbs	quick(adj) > quickly(adv), state(n) > stately(adj), abashed(v) > abashedly(adv)
-mania	an irrational but irresistible motive for a belief or action	kleptomania , megalomania , mythomania
-ography or -ogram	writing, description	stenography , geography , ideogram
-oid	resembling	solenoid , hominoid
-ology	study, science	planetology , thyroidology , phthisiology
-omics	area of biology	proteomics
-onomy	knowledge of	astronomy
-onym	name, word	antonym , consonym , heteronym
-osis	process, action	mitosis , osmosis
-osis	formation	ostosis
-osis	diseased condition	psychosis
-phagy, -phagia	eating	monophagy
-philia	attraction	hemophilia
-phobia	fear	acrophobia , mysophobia
-phone	sound, audio	telephone , homophone
-science	knowing	omniscience
-scope	from Greek skopos , view; instrument for viewing and observing spaces	microscope , telescope
-ship	circle, state of being	friendship , relationship
-stan	land, country	Afghanistan
-tropism	to turn	phototropism
-us	inflammation	ulcus (ulcer)
-ward	direction	southward
-wise	direction	clockwise

English prefixes are affixes (i.e., bound morphemes that provide lexical meaning) that are added before either simple roots or complex bases (or operands) consisting of (a) a root and other affixes, (b) multiple roots, or (c) multiple roots and other affixes. Examples of these follow:

• undo (consisting of prefix un- and root do)
• untouchable (consisting of prefix un-, root touch, and suffix -able)
• non-childproof (consisting of prefix non-, root child, and root proof)
• non-childproofable (consisting of prefix non-, root child, root proof, and suffix -able)

English words may consist of multiple prefixes: anti-pseudo-classicism (containing both an anti- prefix and a pseudo- prefix).

In English, all prefixes are derivational. This contrasts with English suffixes, which may be either derivational or inflectional.

What is a prefix?

A prefix (affix) is a word, or letter(s) placed at the beginning of another word (a base word) to adjust or qualify its usage or meaning. The opposite of prefix is suffix.

List of English Prefixes Prefix General Meaning Example a(n)- not , without atonality , asexuality , amoral , anarchy ab- away abduction , absolutism , ablution ac- acr(o)- high, up Acropolis aden(o)- aer(o)- air aeronautics , aerodrome , aeroplane , aerodynamics agr(o)- relating to farming agriculture an- an(a)- out of anachronism an(o)- andr- man androgyny , androcentrism , android , androgen anem- Anglo- English or British Anglo-Irish relations, anglophile ante- before antebellum anthrop(o)- relating to human beings anthropology , anthropocentrism , anthropomorphic ant(i)- against antidote , antibody , anticlockwise aut(o)- self autonomy , autobiography , automobile , autopilot bar(o)- atmosphere bathy- deep Bathyscape , Bathysphere be- completely, thoroughly; excessively; on; around; about; used to form transitive verbs bi- two bicycle , bijection , bilingual , bicameralism , bisexuality bi(o)- life biology , biography , biosphere , biotechnology bibli(o)- relating to books bibliophilia , bibliography blast(o)- brady- slow bradycardia brom(o)- bronch(o)- relating to breathing bronchitis cac(o)- cardi(o)- heart cardiovascular cent-, centi - hundred or hundredth centenary, centimeter, centipede cephal(o)- chrom(o)-, chromat(o)- chron(o)- time chronology, chronograph circum- around circumcision, circumnavigation, circumlocution, circumference cion(o)- co- together cooperative, cohabit colpo- com-, con-, col-, cor- with, together conference , connotation , context , Congress , congregation contr(a)-, contr(o) against, opposite contradiction , contraception , controversy cosm(o)- cosmology , cosmopolitan , cosmotheism counter- against, opposite counterpoint , counterweight , Counter-Reformation crin(o)- cry(o)- frost , icy cold cryogenics , cryoelectronics , cryostorage crypt(o)- hidden cryptography , cryptozoology cyt(o)- hollow, receptacle, cell cytoplasm , cytology dactyl(o)- de- taking something away, the opposite decentralisation , deforestation , dehydration dec(a)-, dek(a)- ten decamerous deci - one tenth deciliter dem(o)- people, nation demographics , democracy derm(o)-, derm(a)-, dermat- skin dermatology , dermatitis di- two , double didact(o)- apt at teaching dynam(o)- power , force dynamic , dynamite , dynamo dis- reverse , opposite dissent , discovery , disambiguation dox(o)- Doxology dys- bad, deformed, abnormal dyspepsia , dystrophy , dysarthria eco- house economy , ecology , ecosystem , ecotourism , ecotage ecto(s)- outside ectoskeleton edaph(o)- electr(o)- electricity electrocution embry(o)- full encephal(o)- brain encephalitis end(o)-, ent(o)- enne(a)- nine enneastyle enter(o)- eo- dawn, early eobacterium ep(i)-, eph- above epitaxy erg(o)- ergonomics erythr(o)- erot(o)- stom(o)-, stomat(o)- ethn(o)- ethnology , ethnolinguistics , ethnocentrism eu- good eulogy , euthanasia , eugenics , euphemism ex- former ex-wife, ex-president ex(o)- outside exoskeleton extra- very, more than usual, outside, beyond extra-thin, extra-special extraordinary, extraterrestrial flor(i)- relating to flowers florist fore- before, in advance foreskin , foreshadowing gyn- female gynaecology , gynoid hemi- half hemimetabolous hex(a)- six hexapod hyper- excessive, (least to greatest in order: hypo, sub, super, hyper) hyperactive , hyperthyroidism hyp(o)- below, (least to greatest in order: hypo, sub, super, hyper) hypodermic in- extremely inflammable , invaluable in-, il-, im-, ir- not infallibility , illiteracy , immoral , irrelevant inter- between, from one to another intervention , international intra- within, interior intramural, intravenous kilo - thousand kilogram , kilowatt mal- bad, badly malpractice , malnutrition maxi- most, very, large maxi-dress mega -, megal- million , very large megabyte , megaphone meta- after, beyond metacarpal , metaphysics micro - one millionth, very small microgram , microorganism , micronation mid- in the middle of mid-term elections , Mid-Autumn Festival , Mid-Atlantic Ridge milli - thousandth milligram , milliliter mini- small miniskirt , miniscule mis- bad , wrong miscarriage , misanthropy , misogyny mon(o)- one , single monolith , monorail , monotony , monocle multi- many multiculturalism , multilingual non- not nonsense, non-denial denial non- nine none, nonagon oct(o)-, oct(a)- eight octane , octopod , octagon oo- (" oo -oh") egg, ovum oocyte out- more, to a greater degree to outdo, to outrun over- more than normal, too much overpopulation , over-consumption pent(a)- five pentagon post- after Post-Fordism , postpartum depression , postmodernity , postmodernism pre- before prediction , preview , precedent , prenatal care pro- for, in favour of pro-choice, pro-life, promotion quadr-, quart- four quadrangle , quadruplet , quartic , quartile quin(que)- five , into five parts quinquesection quint(i)- fifth , five quintiped re- again, repeatedly reduction , reflection , revolution rect(i)- proper, straight rectify, rectangle scler(o)- hard scleroderma atherosclerosis semi- half semi-automatic , semi-detached sept(a)- seven heptachord sex(i)- six sexivalent Sino- Chinese Sino-American relations spasm(o)- sperm(o)-, spermat(o)- spher(o)- sphygm(o)- pulso sphygmomanometer splen(o)- splanchn(o)- schiz(o)-, schist(o)- split schizophrenia , schistocyte staphyl(o)- styl(o)- pillar sub- below, less than, under,(least to greatest in order: hypo, sub, super, hyper) subset , subsonic , subway , subtitles super- extremely, more than, (least to greatest in order: hypo, sub, super, hyper) superhuman , Superego , supersonic syn- along with, together, at the same time synergy , synchronicity tach(y)-, tach(o)- fast, speed tachycardia , tachometer tel(e)-, tel(o)- far, over a long distance telecommunications , television , telephoto lens , telodynamic tel(o)-, tel(e)- end, complete, mature teloblast trans- across, beyond transfer , transubstantiation , transatlantic , Trans-Siberian railway tri- three triangle , tricolor , triptych ultra- extremely, beyond a certain limit Ultramontanism , ultraviolet un- not, opposite, take something away unconstitutional , undelete uni- one , single uniform , unification ur- first, original urtext zoo- (" zoo -oh") relating to animals zoomorphic , zoolog