A surprisingly large portion of English vocabulary, especially the academic register tested on the GRE, comes from Latin and Greek. When you encounter an unfamiliar word on test day, breaking it into recognizable roots, prefixes, and suffixes can help you make an educated guess about its meaning. This is not a replacement for studying individual words, but it is a powerful backup strategy and an efficient way to learn related words in clusters.
This cheat sheet organizes the most useful roots into three categories: prefixes (which modify the beginning of a word), roots (the core meaning), and suffixes (which modify the ending and often indicate part of speech). For each entry, we give the meaning, two or three GRE-level example words, and a brief note on how the root contributes to those words' meanings.
Common prefixes
Prefixes are attached to the front of a root word and modify its meaning. Many GRE words become transparent once you recognize the prefix.
a-, an- (without, not) — amoral (without morals), anomaly (not normal), apathy (without feeling)
ab-, abs- (away from) — abscond (flee away), abstain (hold away from), aberrant (wandering away from normal)
ad-, ac-, af- (toward, to) — advocate (call toward), accrue (grow toward), affix (attach to)
anti-, ant- (against) — antipathy (feeling against), antithesis (placed against), antagonist (one who struggles against)
bene-, bon- (good, well) — benevolent (wishing well), benefactor (one who does good), bonafide (in good faith)
circum- (around) — circumscribe (draw around, limit), circumspect (looking around carefully), circumvent (go around)
con-, com-, col- (with, together) — concur (run together, agree), compile (pile together), collaborate (work together)
contra-, counter- (against) — contradict (speak against), contravene (come against), counteract (act against)
de- (down, away, reversal) — debase (lower in value), denigrate (blacken, put down), demote (move down)
dis-, dif- (not, apart) — disparate (fundamentally apart), diffident (not confident), disseminate (scatter apart)
ex-, e- (out of, from) — extricate (pull out), elicit (draw out), exacerbate (make more bitter, worsen out)
in-, im-, il-, ir- (not; or into) — intractable (not manageable), impervious (not allowing through), irrevocable (not callable back). Note: this prefix has two meanings — "not" and "into" — so context is critical.
mal-, male- (bad, evil) — malevolent (wishing ill), malfeasance (doing bad), malign (speak ill of)
ob-, oc-, op- (against, toward) — obdurate (hardened against), obstinate (standing against), opprobrium (reproach against)
per- (through, thoroughly) — pervasive (spreading through), perennial (through the years), perfunctory (done thoroughly — ironically now means doing just enough)
pre- (before) — precursor (runner before), prescient (knowing before), precocious (ripened before time)
pro- (forward, in favor of) — proponent (one who puts forward), prolific (producing forward abundantly), propensity (leaning forward toward)
re- (back, again) — recalcitrant (kicking back), reticent (holding back silence), rescind (cut back, cancel)
sub-, sus-, sup- (under, below) — subvert (turn under, undermine), supplant (plant under, replace), surreptitious (done under cover)
trans- (across, beyond) — transgress (step across a boundary), transient (passing across briefly), transcend (climb beyond)
un- (not, reversal) — unprecedented (not preceded before), unequivocal (not ambiguous), untenable (not holdable)
Core roots
Roots carry the primary meaning of a word. Once you learn a root, you can often decode an entire family of related words.
anim (spirit, life) — magnanimous (great-spirited), equanimity (even-spiritedness), pusillanimous (small-spirited, cowardly)
aud, aus (hear, listen) — audacious (bold enough to be heard), auspicious (hearing good omens)
cred (believe) — credulous (too ready to believe), incredulous (not believing), credence (belief, acceptance)
dict, dic (say, speak) — didactic (instructive, teaching), contradict (speak against), edict (something spoken out, a decree)
duc, duct (lead) — conducive (leading together toward), induce (lead into), seduce (lead aside)
fac, fic, fect (make, do) — efficacious (effective at making results), beneficent (doing good), artifice (made with skill, trickery)
gen (birth, origin, kind) — ingenuous (inborn innocence), engender (give birth to), indigenous (born in a place)
gress, grad (step, go) — transgress (step across), digress (step away from the topic), regress (step back)
loqu, loc (speak) — loquacious (talkative), eloquent (speaking out well), colloquial (speaking together, informal)
path (feeling, suffering) — antipathy (against-feeling), apathy (without feeling), empathy (feeling into another's experience)
pon, pos, posit (put, place) — proponent (one who puts forward), juxtapose (place side by side), depose (put down from power)
scrib, script (write) — circumscribe (write around, limit), proscribe (write before, forbid), ascribe (write to, attribute)
sent, sens (feel) — sentient (able to feel), insensible (not feeling), dissent (feel apart, disagree)
spec, spic (look, see) — circumspect (looking around, cautious), specious (looking good but false), perspicacious (seeing through clearly, shrewd)
ten, tin, tain (hold) — tenacious (holding firmly), abstain (hold away from), untenable (not holdable)
ven, vent (come) — circumvent (come around, bypass), contravene (come against), advent (coming to, arrival)
ver (truth) — veracious (truthful), aver (declare to be true), verisimilitude (appearance of truth)
voc, vok (call, voice) — equivocal (equal voices, ambiguous), irrevocable (not callable back), advocate (call toward, support)
Useful suffixes
Suffixes usually indicate part of speech rather than core meaning, but recognizing them helps you parse unfamiliar words and understand how they function in a sentence.
-ous, -ious, -eous (full of, having the quality of) — adjective markers: garrulous, specious, copious
-ive (tending to) — adjective marker: conducive, abrasive, elusive
-ate (to make, to act) — verb marker: ameliorate, exacerbate, vacillate
-ity, -ty (state or quality of) — noun marker: equanimity, alacrity, probity
-tion, -sion (act or process of) — noun marker: aberration, aversion, elucidation
-ant, -ent (one who, that which) — noun or adjective marker: recalcitrant, reticent, ardent
How to study roots effectively
Rather than memorizing this list in isolation, use it as a reference while you study vocabulary. When you encounter a new word in the trainer, pause and see if you can identify its root, prefix, or suffix. Over time, this becomes automatic, and unfamiliar words start to feel less intimidating because you can decompose them into recognizable parts.
Our root category pages group words by their shared roots so you can study them in clusters. This approach reinforces both the root meaning and the individual word definitions simultaneously. For example, studying the "mal/male" root page shows you malevolent, malfeasance, malign, and malcontent side by side, making it obvious that they all involve something bad or harmful.
A word of caution
Root analysis is a tool, not a guarantee. English has borrowed words from many languages, and meanings have shifted over centuries. Some words have roots that no longer transparently reflect their modern meaning (for example, "nice" originally meant "ignorant" from Latin "nescius"). Always verify your root-based guess with context clues in the passage. On the GRE, the surrounding sentence will usually confirm or correct your initial inference.