Teachers frequently debate this question: What’s the difference between a root, base word, and stem? The reason teachers are forced to debate this question is that their textbooks present a model that quickly falls apart in the real world.
If teachers are confused, their students will also be confused. By the end of this page, you won’t be confused. To end this confusion, we will look at two systems:
1. The Traditional Root and Base-Word System for Kids
2. A Modern System of Morphemes, Roots, Bases, and Stems from Linguistics
The Traditional Root and Base-Word System for Kids
Here is a problem-filled system that, unfortunately, some students still learn.
Students learn that ROOTS are Greek and Latin roots. Most of these roots cannot stand alone as words when we remove the prefixes and suffixes.
Q e.g., Word: justify Latin Root: jus (law)
Students also learn that BASE WORDS can stand alone as words when we remove all of the prefixes and suffixes. Students learn that if it cannot stand alone when we remove all of the prefixes and suffixes, then it is not a base word.
Q e.g., Word: kindness Base Word: kind
The problem comes later in the day when the teacher is teaching verb tenses.
Q Teacher: Look at these two verbs: responded and responding. What’s the base word?
Q Student #1: Respond.
Q Teacher: Correct!
Q Student #2: Isn’t re- a prefix? If re- is a prefix, then respond can’t be a base word. I suspect that spond is a Latin root. Is it?
Q Teacher: I’m not sure. Let me research this. Yes, the word respond has the prefix re- attached to the Latin root spond. The Latin root spond comes from sponder, which means to pledge.
Although the teacher was looking for the answer “respond,” Student #2’s answer was the correct answer according to this Traditional System. That’s how easily the Traditional System falls apart. And the problems get worse from here.
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Modern Linguistics
I looked at a few current student textbooks from major publishers, and most of them don’t mention the terms base or base word. They only use the term root in their basic word studies. I suspect that this is because modern linguistics has created a new meaning for the term base.
In case you are not aware, modern linguistics and modern grammar fix many of the broken models from centuries past—i.e., models and definitions that quickly fall apart when you question them. These days, most books on linguistics and morphology present a somewhat standardized model. In English Word-Formation (1983), Laurie Bauer explains this model succinctly and definitively. Let’s take a look.
English Word-Formation (1983) by Laurie Bauer
As you can see below, Bauer acknowledges the root/stem/base problem and then explains a model that removes the ambiguity.
The Problem: “‘Root’, ‘stem’ and ‘base’ are all terms used in the literature to designate that part of a word that remains when all affixes have been removed. Of more recent years, however, there has been some attempt to distinguish consistently between these three terms.”
Root: “A root is a form which is not further analysable, either in terms of derivational or inflectional morphology. It is that part of word-form that remains when all inflectional and derivational affixes have been removed… In the form ‘untouchables’ the root is ‘touch’.”
Stem: “A stem is of concern only when dealing with inflectional morphology. In the form ‘untouchables’ the stem is ‘untouchable’.” [In short, when you remove the inflectional suffixes, you have the stem.]
Base: “A base is any form to which affixes of any kind can be added. This means that any root or any stem can be termed a base… ‘touchable’ can act as a base for prefixation to give ‘untouchable’.”
This model holds up across the curriculum. This model is the foundation of what I teach my students.
My Perfect Model: Roots, Stems, and Bases
I always like to have a complete model in mind that holds up across the curriculum. This lets me find teaching moments and ensures that I can answer my students’ questions clearly and consistently. Although I may not teach my students the entire model, at least the concepts are straight in my mind.
For this reason, I created this “Perfect Model of Roots, Stems, and Bases.” To be clear, this model is an interpretation and fuller explanation of what you might find in a linguistics book. Let me explain it to you. It all begins with morphemes.
Keep in mind that teachers don’t need to teach their students this entire model. In fact, most teachers will want to keep their morphology lessons simple and focus on roots, prefixes, and suffixes. But all teachers will want to understand this entire model.
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Morphemes
The term morpheme unifies the concepts of roots, prefixes, and suffixes, and therefore, it is an extremely valuable word. In short, words are composed of parts called morphemes, and each morpheme contributes meaning to the word. Morphemes are the smallest unit of language that contains meaning. Roots, prefixes, and suffixes all have one thing in common—they are all single morphemes. In contrast, stems and bases can be composed of one or many morphemes.
Root / Root Morpheme
When I use the term root, I always mean the root morpheme. The root is always the main morpheme that carries the main meaning of a word. Since a morpheme is the smallest unit of language that contains meaning, we can’t divide or analyze the root morpheme any further. Although a root can be a stand-alone word, to avoid confusion, I never use the term “root word.” I use the term root, and I use the term root morpheme to reinforce what a root is.
We have two types of root morphemes:
1. Dependent (bound) Roots: These roots cannot stand alone as words. These roots are usually Greek and Latin roots. Here are a few examples:
-
- liberty root: liber (free)
- interrupt root: rupt (break)
- similar root: sim (like)
2. Independent (free) Roots: These roots are stand-alone words. Practically speaking, these roots are almost always single-syllable words. You know the ones. It seems to me that most multi-syllable words can be further divided and further analyzed. With a little research, one finds that an ancient prefix or suffix has merged with a root. In short, most multi-syllable words are not root morphemes.
Here is what they thought 150 years ago. Although modern linguistics does not agree with these statements, it’s still food for thought. My point is that most of the independent roots that we deal with inside of the classroom are single-syllable words.
Q “All languages are formed from roots of one syllable.” – New Englander Magazine (1862)
Q “All words of all languages can be reduced to one-syllable roots.” – New Jerusalem Magazine (1853)
Here are a few examples:
-
- replaced root: place
- mindfulness root: mind
- carefully root: care
The Terms: Dependent Root and Independent Root
Modern linguistics use the term bound (for dependent) and free (for independent) to classify morphemes. Since teachers spend so much time teaching students about dependent clauses and independent clauses, I transfer this knowledge and terminology over to morphemes. Put simply: independent morphemes CAN stand alone; dependent morphemes CAN’T stand alone.
Q PREFIXES and SUFFIXES are almost always dependent morphemes—i.e., they can’t stand alone as words.
Q ROOTS are either dependent or independent morphemes.
Now, we will examine words that contain one root and words that contain two roots. As you examine these words, pay special attention to the dependent root and independent root aspect.
One Root: Many words have just one root. That one root may be a Dependent Root or an Independent Root. Remember, the root carries the main meaning of the word.
Q Word: justify Dependent Root: jus
Q Word: kindness Independent Root: kind
Two Roots: Some words have two roots. The roots may be Dependent Roots or Independent Roots. With two roots, each root contributes near equal meaning to the word.
Two Dependent Roots
Q Word: geography Dependent Root: geo (earth) Root: graph (write)
Q Word: carnivore Dependent Root: carn (flesh) Dependent Root: vor (swallow)
Q Word: cardiovascular Dependent Root: cardi (heart) Dependent Root: vas (vessel)
Two Independent Roots
Q Word: bathroom Independent Root: bath Independent Root: room
Q Word: downfall Independent Root: down Independent Root: fall
Q Word: popcorn Independent Root: pop Independent Root: corn
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Stem
I use the term stem just as Bauer does. To find the stem, simply remove the inflectional suffixes. It’s that simple.
When to Use the Term Stem: The term stem is quite unnecessary in many classrooms, as all stems are bases. For this reason, teachers can always use the term base instead of stem. However, the concept of stems is helpful in teaching students about inflectional suffixes. Inflectional suffixes are different from derivational affixes (derivational prefixes and derivational suffixes).
Q Word: reddest Stem: red
Q Word: girls’ Stem: girl
Q Word: boats Stem: boat
Q Word: preapproved Stem: preapprove
Q Word: justifying Stem: justify
Q Word: responded Stem: respond
Q Word: unjustifiable Stem: no stem
Q Word: kindness Stem: no stem
Base / Base Word
Bauer says, “A base is any form to which affixes of any kind can be added. This means that any root or any stem can be termed a base.”
In the table below, I use two labels to show how base and root relate to each other. Sometimes a base is a root (marked Q Base/Root), and sometimes it is not a root (marked Q Base).
To be clear, we can add a prefix or suffix to every base even if it already has a prefix or suffix. Furthermore, if we can add a prefix or suffix to something, we can call it a base.
Word: reread Q Base/Root: read
Word: unhelpful Q Base: helpful Q Base/Root: help
Word: justifying Q Base: justify Q Base/Root: jus
Word: unreliable Q Base: reliable Q Base/Root: rely
Word: preponderance Q Base: ponderance (uncommon) Q Base/Root: ponder
Word: responded Q Base: respond Q Base/Root: spond
Word: preapproved Q Base: preapprove Q Base: approve Q Base: approved Q Base: proved Q Base/Root: prove
Base vs. Base Word: To keep things simple, teachers should probably strike the term “base word” from their vocabulary. However, if the base is a complete word that can stand alone, teachers may choose to (or through force of habit) refer to it as a base word. If the base can’t stand alone, be sure not to call it a base word.
When to Use the Term Base: The term base is somewhat of a generic term for when we are not interested in or concerned with the root morpheme. As an example, we may choose to use the term base when we are ADDING prefixes and suffixes. When we are adding prefixes and suffixes, we often are unconcerned with finding or discussing the root morpheme. (Remember, we often add prefixes and suffixes to words that already contain prefixes and suffixes.) We may also choose to use the term base when removing a single, specific prefix or suffix, as the word may still contain other prefixes or suffixes.
Putting It All Together
Here is a table to help get you started in your word analysis studies related to root, stem, and base.
| Example Word | Stem | Root: Dependent | Root: Independent | Base |
| 1. undeniable | deny ** | deny; deniable | ||
| 2. reinvented | reinvent | ven/vent | ven/vent; invent; reinvent | |
| 3. deforestation | forest *** | forest; forestation | ||
| 4. interacted | interact | act * | act; interact | |
| 5. demographics | demographic | demo | graph * | demo; graph; demographic |
| 6. responding | respond | spond | spond; respond | |
| 7. preserving | preserve | serv | serv; preserve | |
| 8. hopefully | hope | hope; hopeful |
The Asterisks: The asterisks may be the most important part of this table. They help illustrate that every word has a unique history that often makes analysis and classification complicated and debatable.
* act and graph are also Latin roots
** deny is from Latin denegare = de (away) + negare (to refuse; to say no); since deny technically
has a Latin prefix (de-), you may choose to classify the word differently.
*** forest is from Latin foris meaning outdoors, and unlike the word deny, cannot be analyzed as
having a prefix or suffix attached.
Base words are words that exist as recognizable words in the English language. These words cannot be divided into smaller units. Prefixes and suffixes can be added to these words to create new words. There are two theories about root words. Some people use the term root word as a synonym for the base word. However, in some contexts, root words refer to the part of the base word that comes from another language. This article will mainly focus on this second meaning. The key difference between base word and root word is that base words are recognizable words in the English language whereas root words are from another language.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is a Base Word
3. What is a Root Word
5. Side by Side Comparison – Base Word vs Root Word in Tabular Form
6. Summary
What is a Base Word?
There are two types of words in the English language: the words that can be broken down into smaller units and words that cannot be broken down into smaller units. Words that cannot be broken down into smaller units are known as base words. In other words, base word is the base form of a word and gives its basic meaning. For example, let’s look at the two words happy and unhappy. The word happy cannot be broken down into smaller units, but unhappy can be broken down into two units since this word is made by adding the prefix un to the base word happy. Prefixes and suffixes are always added to base words.
Prefixes and Suffixes
- Prefix is a word element is found in front of a base word.
- Suffix is a word element is found after a base word.
Look at the following words and see if you can identify the base word by removing the suffixes and prefixes.
Reusable, disappear, unhappiness, unacceptable, disqualified, childish, unlikely, reinvention
The base words of the above list are underlined in the following section.
- Reusable – re + use + able
- Disappear – dis + appear
- Unhappiness – un + happy + ness
- Unacceptable – un + accept + ble
- Disqualified – dis + qualify + ed
- Childish – child + ish
- Unlikely – un + like + ly
- Reinvention – re + invent + ion
What is a Root Word?
In linguistics, the term root word is often used synonymously with base word, and refers to a morpheme from which words have been created by the addition of prefixes or suffixes. For example, the word transportation is formed from the root word transport.
However, the term root word also refers to the origin of the word. In this sense, root word is the part of the base word that comes from another language. For example, the word maternal comes from Latin mater and gives the meaning mother. So, this Latin word, mater can be considered as the root word of maternal. The root words of words like maternity, maternally, maternalism, etc. is also the Latin word mater.
Examples of Base Words and Root Words
Let’s look at some other examples to understand the meaning of base words and root words more clearly.
- Tricycle
Base word = cycle, Root word = Latin cyclus (circle)
- Transportation
Base word = transport, Root word = Latin port (to carry)
- Immoderately
Base word = moderate, Root word = Latin moderatus (reduced, controlled)
What is the Difference Between Base Word and Root Word?
Base Word vs Root Word |
|
| Base Word is a morpheme from which words have been created by the addition of prefixes or suffixes. | Root word is the part of the base word that comes from another language. |
| Individual Meaning | |
| Base word can stand alone. | Root word cannot often stand alone. |
| Nature | |
| Base words cannot be further divided. | Root word comes from another language. |
Summary – Base Word vs Root Word
Base word is a form of a word to which affixes can be added to create new words. Base words and root words are two terms that are sometimes used as synonyms. However, root words are also defined as parts of the base word that come from another language. This is the difference between base word and root word.
Download PDF Version of Base Word vs Root Word
You can download PDF version of this article and use it for offline purposes as per citation note. Please download PDF version here Difference Between Base Word and Root Word
References:
1. Merrell, Shelly. “Base Words: Definition & Examples.” Study.com, Available here.
2. Nordquist, Richard. “Base Forms of Words in English.” ThoughtCo, Available here.
What is the root or base of a word?
The part of the word that cannot be broken down is called a base word, also known as a root word. The base word gives the word its basic meaning. Sometimes, base words have a prefix, which is a letter or letters added to the beginning, or a suffix, which is a letter or letters added to the end.
What does the word misbehaving mean?
verb (used without object), mis·be·haved, mis·be·hav·ing. to behave badly or improperly: The children misbehaved during our visit.
What if two equations have a common root?
Statement-I : If equations ax2+bx+c=0;(a,b,c∈R) and 2×2+3x+4=0 have a common root, then a:b:c=2:3:4. Statement-II : If p+iq is one root of a quadratic equation with real coefficients, then p−iq will be the other root ; p,q∈R,i=−1 .
What is the sum of roots?
The sum of the roots of a quadratic equation is equal to the negation of the coefficient of the second term, divided by the leading coefficient. The product of the roots of a quadratic equation is equal to the constant term (the third term), divided by the leading coefficient.
Why do we find roots of equations?
Finding roots are a means to an end in solving sets of equalities (and are useful for understanding inequalities as well). For example if you need to find where two lines meet, then you set up equalities and solve for the unknowns.
What is the formula of alpha and beta?
α+β=−baandαβ=ca. From these formulas, we can also find the value of the sum of the squares of the roots of a quadratic without actually solving the quadratic.
What is root formula?
The square root formula is used to find the square root of a number. We know the exponent formula: n√x x n = x1/n. When n= 2, we call it square root. We can use any of the above methods for finding the square root, such as prime factorization, long division, and so on. 91/2 = √9 = √(3×3) = 3.
How do you find the sum and product of two numbers?
If you are asked to work out the product of two or more numbers, then you need to multiply the numbers together. If you are asked to find the sum of two or more numbers, then you need to add the numbers together.
What is the product of R and 15?
The product of 15 and r means to multiply, (15r) represents that. Decreased by p is meaning that it’s taking away, or subtracting p. That’s why it is – p.
Which two numbers have a sum of 17 and a product of 72?
Answer: 9 and 8.
What two numbers have a product of 24 and a sum of 11?
Answer: The numbers 3 and 8 and be multiply and get 24. They can also be added to get 11.
What two numbers have a product of 28 and a sum of 11?
7 and 4 are the numbers having sum of 11 and product of 28.
What two numbers have a product of 36 and a sum of 13?
Q4)The product of two numbers is 36 and their sum is 13. Find the numbers. Sum of 4 and 9 is 13. Therefore, the numbers are 4 and 9.
What are 2 numbers that make 15?
15 is a composite number. 15 = 1 x 15 or 3 x 5. Factors of 15: 1, 3, 5, 15.
Does sum mean add?
In mathematics, sum can be defined as the result or answer we get on adding two or more numbers or terms. Here, for example, addends 8 and 5 add up to make the sum 13.
What has a sum of 18 and a difference of 6?
“THE SUM OF two numbers is 18 and the difference is 6”. So x+y = 18 and x-y = 6. Algebraically, we can add those two equations to find 2x = 24, so x = 12.
A. morpheme
The smallest meaningful unit in a language. A morpheme cannot be divided without altering or destroying its meaning. For example, the English word kind is a morpheme. If the d is removed, it changes to kin, which has a different meaning. Some words consist of one morpheme, e.g. kind, others of more than one. For example, the English word unkindness consists of three morphemes: the STEM1 kind, the negative prefix un-, and the noun-forming suffix -ness. Morphemes can have grammatical functions. For example, in English the –s in she talks is a grammatical morpheme which shows that the verb is the third-person singular present-tense form.
B. allomorph
any of the different forms of a MORPHEME. For example, in English the plural morpheme is often shown in writing by adding -s to the end of a word, e.g. cat /kæt/ – cats /kæts/. Sometimes this plural morpheme is pronounced /z/, e.g. dog /díg/ – dogs /dígz/, and sometimes it is pronounced /Iz/, e.g. class /klæs/ – classes /`klæsız/. /s/, /z/, and /Iz/ all have the same grammatical function in these examples, they all show plural; they are all allomorphs of the plural morpheme.
C. root
also base form
a MORPHEME which is the basic part of a word and which may, in many languages, occur on its own (e.g. English: man, hold, cold, rhythm). Roots may be joined to other roots (e.g. English: house _ hold → household) and/or take AFFIXes (e.g. manly, coldness) or COMBINING FORMs (e.g. biorhythm).
D. base form
another term for ROOT OR STEM1.
For example, the English word helpful has the base form help.
E. stem1
also base form
that part of a word to which an inflectional AFFIX is or can be added. For example, in English the inflectional affix -s can be added to the stem work to form the plural works in the works of Shakespeare. The stem of a word may be:
a. a simple stem consisting of only one morpheme (ROOT), e.g. work
b. a root plus a derivational affix, e.g. work _ -er _ worker
c. two or more roots, e.g. work _ shop _ workshop.
Thus we can have work _ -s _ works, (work _ -er) _ workers, or
(work _ shop) _ -s _ workshops.
F. Stem versus roots
STEM and ROOT are used to refer to the ‘base’ of a word. The part to which affixes attach. The distinction between them is based on the distinction between inflectional and derivational.
Consider a word like ‘kickers’, it contains two suffixes, one derivational (-er), the other inflectional (-s). strip both affixes off and you are left with kick, which we call a ROOT. Add back on the derivational suffix –er and you get kicker, we call the STEM.
More generally, a root is any single morpheme which is not an affix. Normally, you can find a root by removing all the affixes (both derivational and inflectional) from a word. The stem of a word, on other hand, is found by removing all the inflectional affixes, but leaving any derivational affixes in place.
A root is always a single morpheme. A stem on the other hand, may consists of more than one morpheme. Many stems, like cat consists of only a single root. The stem and the root are identical.
other stems consists of two or more roots, as in view-point. Neither view nor point is an affix and both are single morphemes. So they are both considered to be roots.
a stem containing more than one root is called a COMPOUND STEM or simply a COMPOUND; the process of forming such stems is called COMPOUNDING.
Compounding may, in some cases, involve derivational affixes too, as in rabble-rouser-r; this stem consists of two roots plus a derivational suffix.
and stem may contain more than one derivational affix, as in interlinearizer (a type of computer program that is used by linguists for inserting interlinear word-by-word or morpheme-by-morpheme glosses in a text)
thus, a stem consist of one or more roots, plus zero or more derivational affixes. A root, in contrast, is always a single morpheme.
All stems serve as the base to which inflectional affixes attach. So, for example, all the nouns mentioned above have plural forms.
a. cat-s
b. kicker-s
c. viewpoint-s
d. rabble-rouser-s
e. interlinearizer-s
virtually all roots are also stems and the simplest stems (those consisting of only one morpheme) are also roots.
The English language is a mix of many different languages. Understanding a base word vs. a root word can be confusing. The difference between a base word and a root word may seem simple, but they are actually two entirely different things. One can stand alone, while the other has its roots in ancient language and relies on the addition of other parts of words to be complete.
Basic Parts of a Word
There are three parts to a word. These are:
- Root
- Prefix
- Suffix
Most of the words used in the English language have their origins in Latin or Greek. This is the main meaning of the word. A prefix or suffix added to the root word or base word changes its meaning or defines it in a more concise way.
What Is a Prefix?
A noun prefix is a word or letter or even a number that is placed before a main word. A verb prefix is when something at the beginning is added. An example is, “A preface was prefixed to the history book.”
A short list of prefixes includes:
- Mis- bad or incorrect
- Non- not
- Pro- before or forward
- In- without
- Un- opposite or against
- Re- back or again
- De- away, reverse, from or down
- Dis- opposite or away
- Im- without
For example, the prefix de- when added to the word code changes the meaning of the word and is more concise. The prefix dis- added to the word agree creates an opposite meaning of the original word.
What Is a Suffix?
A group of letters that is placed after a root word is a suffix. Some examples of suffixes include:
- -less without or not affected by
- -er comparative
- -ible capable of
- -able capable of
- -al relating to
- -ness a state or a condition
- -ly in what way
- -est superlative
- -y diminutive or denoting a condition
For instance, the base word comfort with the suffix -able turns it into comfortable. The base word strong with the suffix -est becomes strongest.
What Is a Root Word?
Root words in the English language hail from Latin or Greek words. The root word, or word root, from these ancient languages cannot stand alone. It does not have a prefix at the front of the word or a suffix attached to the end. It is the main lexical unit of a word family and can’t be broken down into words that can stand on their own with meaning.
A few examples of root words include:
- Aud: From Latin, it relates to hearing. Root words include «audible» and «auditorium.»
- Acri: It means bitter and is the base of the root word «acrimony.»
- Corp: This relates to the body and is found in the word «corporate» or «corporation.»
- Deca: From the Greek, this means «ten,» such as «decade.»
What’s a Base Word?
A base word is a word that can stand on its own. It conveys full meaning on its own and doesn’t need a prefix or suffix to carry its connotation.
Happy is a base word and not a root word because it means what it is. Add the prefix un- and it completely changes its meaning into an entirely different word, which is unhappy.
The word view is a base word. Add the suffix -er, and it denotes someone who looks at a view: viewer. Now, add the prefix re- to the base word and you change the word to review. Add both the prefix and suffix for yet another change to the base word view: reviewer.
Table of Contents
- What is the root word or base word?
- What is the root or base word for carelessly?
- What is another name for carelessly?
- Can a root word stand alone?
- What is the main difference between a root word and a root?
- What root means hand?
- What root means light?
- What is the Greek root of chronic?
- What does the root miss mean?
- What does the word Dyna mean?
- Which root word is Greek and means far off?
- What is the Greek root word for measure?
- What is the Latin word for measurement?
- Is Mono a root word?
- What words have the root word Mono?
- What’s a root word for mono?
- What does Mon mono mean?
1. A root word is the primary form of a word while a base word is a word that can stand on its own. 2. A root word may or may not have a meaning while a base word has a meaning on its own. 3.
What is the root or base word for carelessly?
Interestingly, the root meaning of care is “grief,” so careless is “without grief.” Definitions of careless.
What is another name for carelessly?
What is another word for carelessly?
| haphazardly | hastily |
|---|---|
| irresponsibly | negligently |
| nonchalantly | sloppily |
| incautiously | inattentively |
| neglectfully | offhandedly |
Can a root word stand alone?
A root word can be defined as a basic standalone word in which affixes can be added to create new words. A root is the basis of a word and it typically does not stand alone.
What is the main difference between a root word and a root?
Answer Expert Verified. A root word is a word that serves as the base of a new word, such as “love” in “lovely”. The main consideration is that a root word can stand alone as its own word. A root also generally is associated with a meaning, such as “ambi” in ambidextrous.
What root means hand?
man
What root means light?
-luc-
What is the Greek root of chronic?
The word chronic is used to describe things that occur over a long period of time and, in fact, comes from the Greek word for time, khronos.
What does the root miss mean?
to send
What does the word Dyna mean?
a combining form meaning “power,” used in the formation of compound words: dynamotor.
Which root word is Greek and means far off?
Tele
What is the Greek root word for measure?
The Greek root -meter-, meaning “measure,” may already look. familiar to you. In our language it is an independent word that has. several different meanings. Meter stands for a unit of measure equal to about 39.37 inches.
What is the Latin word for measurement?
| English | Latin |
|---|---|
| measure | modus |
Is Mono a root word?
MONO- is a prefix meaning one or single. The prefix MONO– also appears as the root MON-, which also means one, single, or alone in words like monarch, monastery, and monocle.
What words have the root word Mono?
mono- comes from Greek, where it has the meaning “one, single, lone. ” This meaning is found in such words as: monarch, monastery, monochrome, monocle, monogamy, monogram, monograph, monolingual, monolith, monologue, mononucleosis, monopoly, monorail, monosyllable, monotonous.
What’s a root word for mono?
word-forming element of Greek origin meaning “one, single, alone; containing one (atom, etc.),” from Greek monos “single, alone,” from PIE root *men- (4) “small, isolated.”
What does Mon mono mean?
These ROOT-WORDS are Prefixes MON & MONO which mean ONE. It comes from the Greek mons which means ALONE. MON & MONO open the door on marital customs of ancient days, when polygamy was the custom, permitting both many wives and many husbands.
• Categorized under Language | Difference Between Root and Base Word
Root vs Base Word
A word can be simple or complex. In its simplest form, it can have a definite meaning. When combined with other words, it can form new words that may or may not have similar meanings as the original word which can either be a root word or a base word.
A root word is the primary form of a word which can either be free morphemes or bound morphemes. Free morphemes are words that can stand alone or that can appear with other words while bound morphemes are prefixes and suffixes that appear with other morphemes to form a word.
A root word may be a word that has a meaning or one that does not have a meaning. It is the term that a certain word comes from originally and is a word’s basic linguistic unit. It may come from several different languages like Greek and Latin.
Affixes are usually added to root words in order to create new words. In words that have two or more syllables, there is a root word and two or more prefixes or suffixes. The meaning of a word can be easily determined if one knows the root word. Root words are parts of a base word.
A base word is a word that does not have any other words added either at the beginning or its ending. It can stand on its own and has meaning. It is a word that is easily apparent in every language and is a word in its simplest form.
It can be modified by adding suffixes and prefixes to form new words with related meanings although it can have a meaning on its own. Take the word “cycle” for example. It means “wheel.” And if the prefix “bi” is added, it forms the word “bicycle” which means “two wheels.”
It can be further modified by adding the suffix “ist” which means “doer” in order to form the word “cyclist” which means “one who rides a bicycle.” Its root word is the Greek word “kyklos” which means “disk, wheel, or ring” which in turn evolved into the Latin “cyclus” then the Middle English “cicle.”
Root words and base words are stem words. They form the base of other words which are created after affixes are added. The word “act” is a stem word which is also a base word as it can stand on its own. Adding the prefix “counter” would form the new word “counteract” which has an opposite meaning to the base word. Its root word is the Latin “actus.”
Summary
1.A root word is the primary form of a word while a base word is a word that can stand on its own.
2.A root word may or may not have a meaning while a base word has a meaning on its own.
3.New words can be formed using root words and base words by adding suffixes or prefixes, and several affixes can be added to root words for it to have a meaning.
4.A root word is the basic linguistic unit, and it is the original form of a word while a base word is a word in its simplest form.
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APA 7
M, E. (2016, June 8). Difference Between Root and Base Word. Difference Between Similar Terms and Objects. http://www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-root-and-base-word/.
MLA 8
M, Emelda. «Difference Between Root and Base Word.» Difference Between Similar Terms and Objects, 8 June, 2016, http://www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-root-and-base-word/.
Written by : Emelda M.
and updated on 2016, June 8
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