ADJECTIVES #2 | Prefixes & Suffixes | Basic English Grammar Course

Hello, guys. Welcome to this English course on adjectives.

In today’s video, I’m going to talk about prefixes and suffixes that are commonly added

to adjectives in English.

A prefix is a few letters added to a beginning

of a word to change the meaning of that word.

And a suffix is a few letters added to the

end of the word to change the meaning.

We’ll get more into detail.

Let’s get started.

Let’s take a look at a few adjectives with

prefixes. Again a ‘prefix’ is a few letters added

to the beginning of the adjective. Mostly to make it negative.

Let’s take a look at a few examples.

First we have the prefix ‘un’. U, n.

For example, if we take the word, ‘fair’, and want to make it negative, we can add u

– n to have the word ‘unfair’ which is the opposite of fair.

Same goes for ‘happy’. ‘unhappy’

‘sure’ become ‘unsure’. Another prefix is i –n , ‘in’.

To make the adjective negative, again, For example, ‘active’ – ‘inactive’.

‘appropriate’ ’inappropriate’

‘complete’ ‘incomplete’

The prefix i –r now, ‘ir’. For example,

‘responsible’ ‘irresponsible’

‘regular’ ‘irregular’

‘rational’ ‘irrational’

Then we have the prefix i –m, ‘im’. For example,

‘balance’ ‘imbalance’

‘polite’ ‘impolite’

‘possible’ ‘impossible’

And finally, the prefix, ‘il’. I – l.

Like, ‘legal’ ‘illegal’

‘literate’ ‘illiterate’

‘logical’ ‘illogical’

These are just a few examples, guys. There are so many other prefixes in English.

But I hope you now have a better understanding. Let’s move on.

Let’s now talk about suffixes. In English, you can add a few letters to a

noun or a verb to make it into an adjective.

Not necessarily a negative adjective.

It’s not like prefixes.

There are so many suffixes in English, but

here is a list of very common ones.

We can find a suffix ‘able’.

Like, ‘adorable’. ‘comfortable’

Also the suffix ‘en’, e – n. Like, ‘broken’.

‘golden’

‘ese’

Like, ‘Chinese’. ‘Japanese’

‘ful’ Like, ‘wonderful’.

‘powerful’

‘ative’

Like, ‘informative’. ‘talkative’

‘ous’ ‘dangerous’

‘enormous’

Or ‘some’.

Like, ‘awesome’. ‘handsome’

Again, these are just a few examples. There are so many suffixes.

But I hope you now have a good idea of how to use suffixes in English.

Let’s now move on to practice.

Okay, guys.

Let’s practice finding adjectives in the following sentences.

And prefixes or suffixes.

Let’s have a look.

“I have an uncomfortable seat.”

Now, can you spot the adjective, first?

Of course, the adjective here is ‘uncomfortable’.

Can you see any prefix or suffix?

I do.

There is a prefix, which is ‘un’.

And there is a suffix as well. The suffix, ‘able’.

Okay, so look at how we transformed the word.

The first word was ‘comfort’ in English.

First, we added a suffix to make it into an adjective, which is ‘comfortable’.

And then we added a prefix, ‘un’, to make it negative.

So the seat is not comfortable, it is uncomfortable.

That’s how prefixes and suffixes can be

used in English.

The second sentence, “She has a black car.”

Can you spot the adjective, first.

Of course, it’s the adjective ‘black’.

Is there a suffix or a prefix?

No, there isn’t.

Next sentence. “His father was unhelpful.”

What’s the adjective? ‘unhelpful’

Of course.

Any prefix, suffix?

Yes, there is a prefix. Again, which is ‘un’.

To make the adjective negative. And there is a suffix, ‘ful’.

To make the noun ‘help’ into an adjective.

‘unhelpful’

Next sentence. “The actor is handsome.”

The adjective, of course, is ‘handsome’.

Is there a prefix?

No, there isn’t.

Is there a suffix?

Of course, ‘some’.

‘handsome’

“I hate oily food.”

The adjective is ‘oily’. Of course.

Is there a prefix?

There isn’t.

Is there a suffix?

Of course.

The ‘y’ is a suffix. You have the word, the noun, ‘oil’.

And to make it into an adjective you add the suffix ‘y’.

And finally, “She is a dishonest woman.”

The adjective is ‘dishonest’, of course.

Do you have a prefix?

We do. Yes. We have the prefix, ‘dis’.

It shows this woman is not honest, she is dishonest.

Okay, so that’s how with prefixes and suffixes we can really transform words in English.

It’s wonderful isn’t it?

There are thousands of prefixes and suffixes.

Again, these are just a few examples. But I hope you now understand how it works

in English and how you can really transform and play with the different words and kinds

of words.

Okay, guys. Let’s now review the sentences

together and focus on pronunciation.

Repeat after me, please.

“I have an uncomfortable seat.” “I have an uncomfortable seat.”

Good job. Second sentence.

“She has a black car.” “She has a black car.”

Good. Keep repeating.

“His father was unhelpful.” “His father was unhelpful.”

“The actor is handsome.” “The actor is handsome.”

Good. Moving on.

“I hate oily food.” “I hate oily food.”

And finally. “She is a dishonest woman.”

“She is a dishonest woman.”

Excellent guys.

Okay, guys. Thank you for watching this video.

I hoped this helped you understand a bit more about prefixes and suffixes in English.

Keep practicing. It takes practice to get better identifying

prefixes and suffixes, but I’m sure you can do it.

Make sure you watch the video as I continue talking about adjectives in English.

Thank you.

Thank you guys for watching my video.

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