prefixes
Add a suitable prefix: The company decided to ___evaluate its performance after the crisis.
Re-evaluate
Add a suffix to rely to form an adjective meaning “able to be trusted.”
Reliable
A man has 4 daughters. Each daughter has one brother. How many children does he have?
5 children — 4 daughters and 1 brother.
The word * Google* is used as a verb in “I googled the answer.” What word-formation process is this?
Conversion
What is the study of words and their meanings called?
Lexicology
Which prefix completes the word meaning “to misinterpret something”: ___interpret?
Mis- → Misinterpret
Change accurate into a noun using a suffix.
Accuracy
If yesterday was two days before Friday, what day is today?
Thursday
Use the word bottle first as a noun and then as a verb in two sentences.
“The bottle is empty.” / “Bottle the juice.”
What is the difference between synonyms and antonyms? Give one example of each.
Synonyms have similar meanings (big–large); antonyms have opposite meanings (hot–cold).
Explain the difference between underestimate and overestimate.
Underestimate means to judge something as less than it is; overestimate means to judge it as greater than it is.
Which suffix completes the word: “The manager showed great ___ (confident) during the presentation.”
Confidence
You have 6 eggs. You break 2, cook 2, and eat 2. How many eggs are left?
4 eggs — the same 2 eggs can be broken, cooked, and eaten.
In the sentence “They gave us a warm welcome,” the word welcome is a noun. What part of speech is it in “We welcome new students”?
Verb
The word bank can mean a financial institution or the side of a river. What linguistic phenomenon is this?
Homonymy (more specifically, homonymy is a possible analysis; the river and financial senses are often treated as homonyms).
Add the correct prefix: The witness gave an ___accurate description of the event.
In- → Inaccurate
Identify the two suffixes in carelessness and explain how the word is formed.
-less and -ness: care → careless → carelessness.
A bat and a ball cost $1.10 together. The bat costs $1 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost?
5 cents. The bat costs $1.05.
Explain how empty changes its grammatical function in “The box is empty” and “Empty the box.”
It changes from an adjective to a verb through conversion.
In the expression “She spilled the beans,” does the phrase have a literal or figurative meaning? What does it mean?
Figurative meaning; it means to reveal a secret.
Form a word with a negative prefix: “His argument was logical, but the conclusion was ___logical.” Explain your choice.
Illogical — il- is the negative prefix used before l.
Correct the mistake: “Her explanation was very convincement.” Which suffix should be used instead, and why?
Convincing — -ing forms the adjective here; -ment usually forms nouns, as in development.
There are three switches outside a closed room. Only one controls a light bulb inside. You can operate the switches however you like, but enter the room only once. How can you identify the correct switch?
Turn on switch 1 for a few minutes, then turn it off. Turn on switch 2 and enter the room. If the bulb is on, switch 2 controls it. If it is off but warm, switch 1 controls it. If it is off and cold, switch 3 controls it.
A student says that worker is formed through conversion from work. Is the student correct? Explain your answer.
No. Worker is formed through affixation by adding the suffix -er. Conversion would be work (noun) → to work (verb), with no change in form.
Explain the difference between polysemy and homonymy, giving one example of each.
Polysemy: one word has related meanings, e.g. head of a person and head of a department. Homonymy: the same form has unrelated meanings, e.g. bat (an animal) and bat (used in sports).