Nouns
anti-
‘opposed to, against, the opposite of’
antihero
counter-
‘against’, ‘opposite’
counterterrorism, counter-argument, counter-pressure, counterpart
dis-
(negative)
disorder
ex-
‘former’
ex-wife
fore-
‘in the front’
foreword (‘short introduction at the beginning of a book’), foreground (‘he part of a view, picture, etc. that is nearest to you’), forethought, foretaste, foretelling
-in
negative
independence, inaccuracy, inconvenience
Note!
il-+ l
illegality
im- + b,m,p
imbalance, immortality, impurity
ir- + r
irregularity
inter-
‘between; from one to another’
interaction
mis-
‘bad or wrong’
misbehaviour, misunderstanding
non-
‘not’
nonsense, non-fiction
over-
‘more than usual’, ‘too much’
overpopulation, overwork
post-
‘after’ (Latin)
a postgraduate, postscript
pre-
‘before’ (Latin)
precaution, prefix
sub-
‘under’ (Latin)
subway, submarine
super-
1) ‘extremely, more or better than normal’ (Latin)
superhuman
2) ‘above/over’
superstructure
under-
1) ‘below’
undercoat
2) ‘lower in age or rank’
an undergraduate
Adjectives
anti-
1) ‘opposed to, against’
anti-tank (weapons)
2) ‘the opposite of’
antisocial
counter- ‘
‘against, opposite’
counterair
dis-
negative, ‘the opposite of’
dishonest, disobedient
-in
negative, ‘the opposite of’
indefinite, independent
Note!
il-+ l
illegal
im- + b,m,p
imbalanced, immortal, impossible
ir- + r
irregular
inter-
‘between’
international, interactive
non-
negative, ‘not’
non-alcoholic, non-smoking
over-
‘more than usual’; ‘too much’
overweight
post-
‘after’
postwar
pre-
‘before’
prehistoric
sub-
1) ‘below, less than’
subtropical
2) ‘under’
sub-zero
super-
‘extremely, more or better than normal’
super-rich
trans-
‘across, beyond’ (Latin)
transatlantic
ultra-
‘extremely’
ultra-modern, ultra-sensitive
un-
negative, ‘the opposite of’
untrue
under-
‘not enough’
undercooked
Verbs
counter-
to counteract (‘to do something to reduce or prevent the bad or harmful effects of something’) (e.g. These exercises aim to counteract the effects of stress and tension.)
dis-
(negative)
to disappear
en-
[in]
verb-forming from nouns and adjectives, ‘to put into the thing or condition mentioned’ to enlarge (‘to make bigger’)
to encircle (‘to surround somebody/something completely in a circle’)
to endanger , to ensure
Note!
em- + b,m,p
to empower (‘to give somebody the power or authority to do something’)
fore-
‘to do before, in advance’
to foretell (‘say what will happen in the future’)
inter-
‘between’; ‘from one to another’
to interact
mis-
‘to do smth bad/wrongly’
to misunderstand
to misinterpret
to misbehave
over-
‘more than usual’; ‘too much’
to overpay
pre-
‘to do smth before an action’
to preheat (‘to heat smth before using it’)
re-
‘again’ (Latin)
to rewrite, redo
(+ related nouns and adjectives, e.g. reincarnation, reassuring)
super-
‘above/over’
to superimpose
trans-
‘into another place or state’
to transform
un-
‘to do the opposite of a process“
to unlock
to undo
to unwrap
under-
underestimate
Resources used: 1) Веселова Ю.С. Тематический тренажер по английскому языку. 2) https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/
Exercises
1.Make the opposites of these adjectives using negative prefixes (dis-, in-/il-/im-/ir-, un-).
a) comfortable, respectful, mature, exact, easy, precise, legal, literate, trustful, realistic, modest, believable, relevant, acceptable, certain, satisfied, rational, deniable;
b) enthusiastic, convenient, desirable, important, necessary, experienced, effective, practical, healthy, active, attentive, sociable, movable, able, obedient.
1.1 Complete the sentences with some of the following negative adjectives: 1) illegal, uncomfortable, uncertain, unsociable, immature, uneasy, inexperienced, unhealthy, disrespectful, inattentive.
1) Stop being so … Go and meet the guests!
2) He was feeling … about the long pause in the conversation and was struggling to find a topic.
3) The company hires … graduates and turns them into qualified employees.
4) She resents his … manners. ‘He has no clue how to be a gentleman’, she says.
5) I can’t believe he’s 30! He’s very childish and … for his age.
6) My summer plans are very … I might go to Spain or stay home and prepare for the exams.
7) He looks somewhat… in this photo with dark areas under his eyes.
8) It is… to copy any form of original work without the permission of the author.
9) I couldn’t sleep on this bed because it was really …
10) The mayor was criticized for being completely … to the needs of the citizens.
Additional*
1. Make the opposites of these adjectives using negative prefixes (dis-, in-/il-/im-/ir-, un-)
a) uncomfortable, disrespectful, immature, inexact, uneasy (‘feeling worried or unhappy’/’making one feel uneasy’/ ‘not safe or settled’), imprecise, illegal, illiterate, distrustful, unrealistic, immodest, unbelievable, irrelevant, unacceptable, uncertain, dissatisfied, irrational, undeniable
b) unenthusiastic, inconvenient, undesirable, unimportant, unnecessary, inexperienced (un-), ineffective, impractical, unhealthy, inactive, inattentive, unsociable, immovable, unable, disobedient, uninspiring
1.1 Complete the sentences with some of the negative adjectives you have formed.1) unsociable, 2) uneasy, 3) inexperienced, 4) disrespectful, 5) immature, 6) uncertain, 7) unhealthy, 8) illegal, 9) uncomfortable, 10) inattentive