As we cover in our Conquer SAT Vocabulary video course, when you come across a vocab word you don’t know on the SAT, there are a few ways to deal with it. The first involves checking for context clues, and the second involves taking the word apart, so to speak, to examine its prefix, suffix, or root. If you’re familiar with these common prefixes, suffixes, and roots, you’re more likely to be able to guess at the meaning of the word.
Here’s a list of some of the most common prefixes, suffixes, and roots on the SAT. If you memorize these prefixes, suffixes, and roots, vocabulary words that employ them should be a breeze!
Check out the following list, then for more SAT vocab tips enroll in Conquer SAT Vocabulary!
Top SAT Vocabulary Prefixes, Suffixes, and Roots
A – Not, without
Ab – Away from
Ad – toward
An – Not, without
Ama – Love
Ambi – Both
Ambu – Walk, move
Anim – Life, spirit
Ante – Before
Anti – Against
Auc – Increase
Aud / Aur – Hear
Aug – Increase
Auto – Self
Bell – War
Bene – Good
Bon – Good
Bi – Two
Brev – Short
Caco – bad, abnormal
Chron – Time
Circum – Around
Cog – Think
Co, Con – With
Corp – Body
Contra – Against
Cred – Trust, believe
Culp – Guilt
Demo – people
Di – Two
Dia – Through
Dict – Say
Dis – Not
Dog, dox – thought, idea
Dom – Mastery
Dur – Hard, Lasting
Dys – Difficult
Err – Wrong
Eu – Good
E, Ex – From
Fac, Far – Do, make
Fall – False
Fid – Loyal
Fiss – Break, apart
Fort – strength
Gen – Knowledge OR Innate
Grav – Weight, Serious
Hetero – Different
Homo – Same
Hydro – Water
Hyper – Over
Im, In – Not
Intra – Within
Inter – Between
Lev – Light (weight)
Lib – Free OR Book
Luc, Lux – Light (absence of dark)
Loc, Loq – Words, Speech
Magna – Large
Macro – Large
Mal – Bad
Mater – Mother
Ment – Mind
Micro – Small
Moll – Soft
Morph – Change
Mort – Death
Multi – Many
Mut – Change
Nom – Name
Ob – Against
Os – Bone
Pac, Plac – Peace
Para – Alongside, Contrary to
Pater – Father
Ped – Foot OR Child
Pej – Bad
Pend – Hang
Peri – Around
Phon – Sound
Port – Carry
Pot – Power
Pro – In favor of
Pug – War, fight
Re – Again
Scrib – Write
Sens, Sent – Feel
Seq – Follow
Spec – Look
Stat – Stand
Sub – Below
Super – Above
Tac – Silence
Temp – Time
Ten – Hold
Terr – Earth
Tract – Move
Trans – Through
Vac – Empty, waver
Val – Value
Vap – Air, Steam
Ven – Come
Vener – Worship, Love
Ver – True
Vid – See
Vig – Energy
Vit – Life
Voc, Vox – Voice
Vol – Roll, turn, desire, fly
Xen – Stranger
* * *
Easy, huh? Now you’ve mastered some common prefixes, suffixes, and roots on the SAT!
Now enroll in our Conquer SAT Vocabulary video course for more pro tips from a perfect-scoring tutor!
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Additional Resources:
Conquer SAT Vocabulary Video Course