Latin Roots & Affixes, Lesson 1

Latin has had a large impact on the English language. Nearly fifty percent of the words in English come from Latin. These are either roots (the basis of any word) or affixes (prefixes before the root and suffixes after the root).
All words in English come from roots, prefixes and suffixes. An example is given below.
intersection

The root sect means “cut”.

The prefix inter means "between" and the suffix ion means "make a noun".

So, the place where Pacific Coast Highway and Palos Verdes Drive meet is called an intersection.

In this lesson we will focus on the root –duct-. This root is very common and is seen in such words as conduct and products. For example: The government is conducting research on whether the products caused cancer. The meaning of this root is “lead”.

sect
Click on the button below to see some words that can be built from the root DUCT.


Exercise

Instructions: Using what you know about these roots and affixes and the context, determine the meaning of the following bold-faced words.

  1. Leonard dreamed of conducting😄 Con- means "with, together". the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.
  2. The coop advertising allowance was deducted😄 De- means "down" from invoice (DFI) bringing the cost down by three percent.
  3. The Romans built aqueducts😄 Aqua- means "water". all over Rome to bring water to their city.
  4. The man was abducted😄 Ab- means "away". by the drug dealers and held for ransom.
  5. The Bible tells us that Adam and Eve were seduced😄 Se- means "away". by the devil in the Garden of Eden.
  6. Due to poor economic conditions, the factory had to reduce😄 Re- means "back". production by 20 percent.
  7. Hydrocarbons are harmful byproducts😄 By- means "next to". which occur when fuel in the automobile engine does not burn or only partially burns.
  8. The Brightline West high-speed rail project, which will connect Las Vegas to Southern California, covers more than 160 structures including viaducts😄 Via- means "way" and bridges.




Check-Up
Select the correct word
for each blank below.

1) If you travel to Rome, do you plan to see the _____________?

Wrong
byproducts
Right
aqueducts
Wrong
conductors
Wrong
abductees


2) Fahad skillfully ___________ his Royal Guards.

Wrong
deducted
Wrong
reduced
Right
conducted
Wrong
produced


3) When we noticed the Amber Alert, we realized that a child had been _____________.

Wrong
produced
Wrong
conducive
Wrong
reduced
Right
abducted


4) Bakri claims that Mariya __________ him with her smile.

Wrong
reduced
Right
seduced
Wrong
conducted
Wrong
deducted


5) Sometimes technology ___________ unexpected byproducts that can be used by society.

Right
produces
Wrong
reduces
Wrong
induces
Wrong
seduces


Well, you've learned about the root duct. Now, examine the images below. In the photo on the left, we see duct tape. Why is it called that? In the illustration on the right, we see the tear duct for a human eye labeled as such. Why is that?

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