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English Vocabulary in Use Advance (Unit 86: Prefixes: creating new meanings)


A. Common prefixes

in- (and its variations im-, il-, ir-) can make a word negative, as in inappropriate, incapable, inaccuracy, inability and imperfect.
mis- means wrongly or badly, e.g. misbehave and misuse. [use in the wrong way or for the wrong purpose]
out- suggests being greater or better than something, e.g. outnumber [to be larger in number than another group] and outweigh. [be greater or more important than something else]
re- has the meaning of ‘do again’ as in reconsider [think again about a decision or opinion], redevelop and rethink. [change what you think about something or what you plan to do]
e- has the meaning of ‘electronic’ as in e-commerce [buying and selling goods online], e-reader [an electronic device for reading books] and e-cigarettes. [cigarettes that use water vapour rather than tobacco]
eco- has the meaning of ‘good for the environment’, as in eco-friendly cleaning products, an eco-city [using energy efficiently and producing very little pollution] and an eco-warrior. [an informal word for someone who campaigns to protect the environment]

B. Preposition-based prefixes

over- may indicate (a) an excess of something, (b) being above something, or (c) going across something.
(a) EXCESS That film was overrated in my view. [people said it was better than it really was] It was a bad restaurant, with an overpriced menu. [too high prices]
(b) ABOVE Several of our neighbour’s large trees overhang our garden. [their branches go over our garden]
Our garden is overshadowed by the block of flats next door. [the flats cast a shadow over our garden]
She always felt overshadowed by her older, more successful, sister. [metaphorical use, felt less important than]
(c) ACROSS He overstepped the mark when he said that. [crossed a barrier into offensive/unacceptable behaviour]
Will you be staying overnight? [cross from one day to the next]
under- may indicate (a) less than the desired amount, (b) something below another thing, or (c) some kind of negative behaviour.
(a) LESS Don’t underestimate the time it will take. [think it will be less than it really is]
The company is seriously understaffed. [lacking staff]
(b) BELOW It’s quite wet underfoot. Did it rain last night? [on the ground, beneath your feet]
The underlying question is a very difficult one. [the deeper question]
(c) NEGATIVE I wish you would not undermine everything I do. [attack, weaken]
He did it in a very underhand way. [secretly and possibly dishonestly]

up- can suggest a change of some kind, often positive.
The airline upgraded me to business class. [changed my ticket to a better class]
There has been an upturn in the economy. [change for the better]

C. Less frequent prefixes

con-/com- often suggests mixing things together (often in verbs of communication).
    converse commiserate condolences congeal contaminate
pro- can often suggest pushing something forward or increasing it.
    promote proliferate procrastinate procreate
e- can give the idea of something coming out of something.
    They were ejected from the restaurant for bad behaviour. [thrown out; formal]
    The machine emitted a loud noise and then stopped working. [gave out; formal]
Exercise-86.1


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