One way you can do this is to find a verb (an action word that tells you what's happening) and grad¬ually incorporate the words around it into an increasingly longer phrase as you decipher its meaning. The verb provides an anchor for the meaning because it tells you what is being done. | USING PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES prefix mal- means bad evil or wrong can help you significantly narrow down your choices in the following question To malign means a. to arrange. b. to speak badly about. c. to charm enchant. d. to cast an evil spell. With your knowledge of prefixes you can eliminate choices a and c leaving you with a 50-50 chance of choosing the correct answer. If you recall any context in which you have heard the word malign before you may be able to choose the correct answer b. To malign is to say evil harmful and often untrue things about someone to speak ill of. J HERE S A HINT NUMERICAL PREFIXES Probably among the most easily recognized of the prefixes are the numerical prefixes that is those that can tell something about the number represented by the word. Take a look at some words that contain numerical prefixes bipartisan two parties triage responding to the needs in order of priority traditionally in three orders of priority and trilogy a series of three plays . Among the most common number related prefixes are un- mono- one unique unity monotonous monopoly bi- two bigamy bilateral bicameral bicycle tri- three trivial trident trinity triple quad- quar- four quadrant quarter quart quartet deci- ten decade decathlon decimal decibel cent- hundred century centipede centennial mil- thousand millipede millennium millimeter Following is a list of the prefixes. For each prefix we have provided two examples of words that use that prefix. With a few exceptions these examples are not test-prep words rather they are basic words that are probably already a part of your vocabulary. This will help you remember the meaning of each prefix and show you just how well you already know them. 34 VOCABULARY FOR TOEFL iBT I Common Prefixes a- an- not without amoral not moral atypical not typical ab- abs- from away off abduct to take by force abnormal away from or apart from the standard ante- prior to in front of before anterior placed before antedate to proceed in .
