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Prefixes and combining forms—M to N
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Want to expand your vocabulary? Figure out the meaning of an unknown word? If so, learning to identify prefixes and understanding their meaning will help you do just that.
What's a prefix? It's a word form that attaches itself to the beginning of another word (the base word) to change the word's meaning. For example, the prefix ex means "former." Connect it to the base word friend, and you're no longer on friendly terms—you're an ex-friend. Big difference.
But what about ex in the word exclude? Is that a prefix, too? No, it isn't. It's a combining form meaning "out," and it attaches itself to a root word, not a base word. Remove the ex, and you're left with the root clude, which makes no sense by itself.
Have fun increasing your word knowledge with these common English prefixes and combining forms.
M
macro
Meaning:long, large, large-scale
Example:The macrobiotic diet includes grains, vegetables and legumes.
mal
Meaning 1:bad(ly)
Example:A malodorous discharge may indicate an infection.
Meaning 2:abnormal(ly)
Example:The child was born with a heart malformation.
Meaning 3:poor(ly)
Example:The organization works to save the lives of malnourished children.
matri
Meaning:mother
Example:The oldest female in an elephant herd takes the role of matriarch.
Mc
Meaning:a convenient, low-cost product or service, usually of lower quality
Example:Drive-in medical clinics are known as McDoctors.
mega
Meaning 1:large
Example:The hotel re-opened with a megaparty.
Meaning 2:one million, a million times
Example:Megaampere is a measure of electric current.
Meaning 3:to a great degree
Example:Some luxury vacation homes can be environmental megapolluters.
meta
Meaning 1:change
Example:The caterpillar metamorphosed into a butterfly.
Meaning 2:beyond
Example:Metaphysics is the study of the nature of reality.
Meaning 3:of a higher level, order, kind or stage
Example:Metadata describes other data.
micro
Meaning:small
Example:Microchipping is a safe method of identifying your pet if it gets lost.
milli
Meaning 1:thousand
Example:A gigantic millipede slithered out of the cave.
Meaning 2:thousandth
Example:An annual rainfall of 6500 millimetres makes Henderson Lake the wettest place in North America.
mini
Meaning:very small
Example:A minibus shuttles guests to a private beach.
mis
Meaning 1:wrongly
Example:They misspelled my name in the concert program.
Meaning 2:badly
Example:She misbehaved throughout the entire recital.
mono
Meaning:one
Example:Shakespeare's plays are full of monologues.
multi
Meaning:many, more than one
Example:Canada is a multiracial country.
N
nano
Meaning:one billionth
Example:1.017 nanoseconds is the approximate time it takes for light to travel 1 foot.
nas, naso
Meaning:nose
Example:He talks with a nasal voice.
The nasolabial folds are more commonly known as "laugh lines."
neo
Meaning:new, recent
Example:A neologism is a newly coined word.
neuro
Meaning:nerve
Example:Neuroanatomy deals with the structure of the nervous system.
noci
Meaning:pain
Example:Nocireceptors are sensory receptors that respond to pain.
noct
Meaning:night
Example:Owls are nocturnal birds.
non
Meaning:not
Example:I made a non-alcoholic punch for the party.
nona
Meaning:ninth, nine
Example:A nonagon has nine sides.
nulli
Meaning:no, none
Example:Nulliparous is the medical term for a woman who has never given birth.
