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Word Study · Word roots

Greek and Latin Roots: aud, port, struct, scrib, tele, bio

Learn eight Greek and Latin word roots, such as port (carry) and tele (far), and use them to work out the meaning of new words like portable and telescope.

Grades 3–5 · 15 practice questions · Original material
Learning objectiveExplain the root meanings of aud (hear), port (carry), struct (build), scrib/script (write), tele (far), photo (light), graph (write) and bio (life); use them to work out the meaning of longer words; and recognize words that only look like they contain a root.

The idea

Many long English words are built from pieces that come from Latin or ancient Greek. A word root is one of those pieces. The root carries the main idea of the word, so if you know the root you can often make a good guess at a word you have never seen.

Here are eight roots. Latin roots: aud means hear, port means carry, struct means build, and scrib or script means write. Greek roots: tele means far, photo means light, graph means write or draw, and bio means life. These are the root meanings, which are often a little different from the way the whole word is used today.

Look at portable. Port means carry and -able means able to be, so portable means able to be carried. Look at telephone: tele means far and phone means sound, so a telephone carries sound from far away. Many words use two roots joined together, such as photo + graph in photograph and bio + graph in biography.

Use the meaning check. Find the root, say what it means and see whether that meaning fits the word. Portion begins with the letters port, but it does not mean carry, so it does not belong to this family. If the meaning does not fit, do not trust the letters.

Word bank

audible

adjective · AW-duh-bul

able to be heard (root aud, to hear)

Example: The teacher's voice was barely audible at the back.

audience

noun · AW-dee-ens

the people who listen to or watch a show (root aud, to hear)

Example: The audience clapped when the choir finished.

portable

adjective · POR-tuh-bul

able to be carried easily (root port, to carry)

Example: I use a portable speaker at the park.

transport

verb · trans-PORT

to carry people or things from one place to another (root port, to carry)

Example: Trucks transport food to the stores.

export

verb · ex-PORT

to carry goods out of a country to sell them (root port, to carry)

Example: Canada exports wheat to many countries.

construct

verb · kun-STRUKT

to build something (root struct, to build)

Example: Workers will construct a new bridge.

structure

noun · STRUK-cher

something that has been built, such as a building or bridge (root struct, to build)

Example: The Eiffel Tower is a famous iron structure.

describe

verb · dih-SKRYB

to tell or write about what something is like (root scrib, to write)

Example: Describe the picture using three adjectives.

script

noun · SKRIPT

the written words that actors say in a play or movie (root script, written)

Example: She memorized her lines from the script.

telephone

noun · TEL-uh-fohn

a device that carries voices from far away (tele, far + phone, sound)

Example: I called Grandma on the telephone.

telescope

noun · TEL-uh-skohp

a tool for looking at things that are far away (tele, far + scope, look at)

Example: We saw Saturn's rings through a telescope.

photograph

noun · FOH-tuh-graf

a picture made with light by a camera (photo, light + graph, write or draw)

Example: The photograph shows our class on the field trip.

photosynthesis

noun · foh-toh-SIN-thuh-sis

how plants use light to make their own food (photo, light + synthesis, putting together)

Example: Leaves need sunlight for photosynthesis.

autograph

noun · AW-tuh-graf

a person's own signature, written by that person (auto, self + graph, write)

Example: The hockey player signed an autograph for me.

biology

noun · by-OL-uh-jee

the study of living things (bio, life + -logy, study of)

Example: In biology we studied how frogs grow.

biography

noun · by-OG-ruh-fee

a book about the life of a real person (bio, life + graph, write)

Example: I read a biography of Terry Fox.

Worked examples

Example 1 · Work out a word

What does construct mean if struct means build and con- means together?

  1. Find the root: struct, which means build.
  2. Add the prefix con-, which here means together.
  3. Put the parts together: build something by putting pieces together.

Construct means to build something.

Example 2 · Two roots in one word

What does telescope mean if tele means far and scope means look at?

  1. Find the first root: tele means far.
  2. Find the second part: scope means look at.
  3. Join the meanings: look at things that are far away.

A telescope is a tool for looking at faraway things.

Example 3 · Choose the root

Which root belongs in the word ___ible, meaning able to be heard: aud, port or struct?

  1. Decide the idea: heard, which is about hearing.
  2. Match it: aud means hear.
  3. Check: aud + ible gives audible, a real word.

aud, which makes audible.

Example 4 · Is the root really there?

Does portion mean to carry because it begins with port?

  1. The letters port are at the start, so check the meaning.
  2. A portion is a share or a part of something, not something carried.
  3. The meaning does not fit, so portion is not a port (carry) word.

No. Portion only looks like it has the root port.

Common mistakes

Thinking that every word with the same letters has the same root.

Why this fails: Portion starts with port but is not about carrying. Check the meaning of the whole word, not only the letters.

Mixing up the two roots that mean write: scrib or script and graph.

Why this fails: Both mean write. Scrib and script come from Latin (describe, script), and graph comes from Greek (photograph, autograph). The words they make are different, so learn each word whole.

Mixing up tele (far) with photo (light) or bio (life) because all three come from Greek.

Why this fails: Say the root meaning first. Telephone is far + sound, photograph is light + write and biology is life + study of.

Expecting the root meaning to be the whole meaning of the word.

Why this fails: The root gives the main idea. A photograph is more than writing with light, and biology is more than life. Use the roots to guess and then check a dictionary.

Spelling a root differently in a new word, such as writing telefone for telephone.

Why this fails: Roots keep their spelling. Photo, graph and phone each keep their ph, which is the Greek spelling for the f sound.

Foundation

Foundation practice

Learn what each Greek or Latin root means.

Root meaning

1. What does the root port mean in portable and transport?

  1. To build
  2. To carry
  3. To write
  4. To hear
Root meaning

2. The root aud means "hear". Which word means able to be heard?

  1. audible
  2. visible
  3. portable
  4. legible
Root meaning

3. The Greek root bio means "life". Which word is about the study of living things?

  1. geology
  2. technology
  3. biology
  4. psychology
Root meaning

4. The Greek root tele means "far". Which tool lets you look at faraway stars?

  1. microscope
  2. periscope
  3. kaleidoscope
  4. telescope
Root meaning

5. The roots scrib and script mean "write". Which word uses that root?

  1. decide
  2. describe
  3. deliver
  4. defend

Practice

Practice practice

Match roots to words and work out new meanings.

Match root and word

6. Which word has a root that means "build"?

  1. transport
  2. telephone
  3. construct
  4. audience
Use the roots

7. Photo means "light" and graph means "write or draw". What is a photograph, using the roots?

  1. A picture made with light
  2. A drawing of a person
  3. A story about someone's life
  4. A sound sent from far away
Use the roots

8. A biography is a book about a person's life. Which two roots build the word?

  1. photo + graph
  2. tele + graph
  3. bio + scope
  4. bio + graph
Odd one out

9. Three words share the root port (carry). Which word does not?

  1. portable
  2. audience
  3. export
  4. transport
Fill the gap

10. Which word completes the sentence? "The actors learned their lines from the ___."

  1. structure
  2. telescope
  3. script
  4. biology

Challenge

Challenge practice

Check tricky words and use roots on your own.

Use the roots

11. Auto means "self". What is an autograph, using the roots?

  1. A machine that writes by itself
  2. A book about cars
  3. A picture you take of yourself
  4. A person's own signature, written by that person
Odd one out

12. Three of these words contain a root about writing or drawing. Which does not?

  1. telescope
  2. photograph
  3. describe
  4. autograph
Tricky word

13. The word portion starts with the letters port. Which statement is correct?

  1. It has the root port, so it means to carry.
  2. It has the root port, so it means a harbour.
  3. It comes from a different Latin word meaning a share or a part, not from carry.
  4. It has the root aud, so it means to hear.
Use the roots

14. Photosynthesis is photo (light) + synthesis (putting together). What does the first part tell you?

  1. Plants carry water to faraway places.
  2. Plants use light to put together their own food.
  3. Plants are living things.
  4. Plants write their own names.
Write your own

15. Choose two words from the word bank that share a root, or two roots that you like. Explain the meaning of each root and write one sentence for each word.

Answer key

  1. 1. To carry
    Portable means able to be carried, and transport means to carry from place to place. Build is the root meaning of struct, write is the root meaning of scrib or script, and hear is the root meaning of aud.
  2. 2. audible
    Audible is aud (hear) + -ible (able to be). Visible is about seeing, portable is about carrying and legible is about reading. They all end in -ible, but only audible has the aud root.
  3. 3. biology
    Biology is bio (life) + -logy (study of). Geology studies the Earth, technology is about tools and methods, and psychology studies the mind. They share -logy but not bio.
  4. 4. telescope
    Tele (far) + scope (look at) gives a tool for looking at faraway things. A microscope looks at tiny things up close. Periscope and kaleidoscope also end in scope, but they do not start with tele.
  5. 5. describe
    Describe is de- + scrib (write), so it means to tell or write about something. Decide, deliver and defend also start with de-, but their roots are not about writing.
  6. 6. construct
    Construct is con- + struct (build). Transport has port (carry), telephone has tele (far) and audience has aud (hear).
  7. 7. A picture made with light
    A photograph is photo (light) + graph (write or draw): an image made by light. A drawing is made by hand, not by light. A story about a life would use bio, and sound from far away would use tele.
  8. 8. bio + graph
    Bio is life and graph is write, so a biography is life-writing. Photo + graph makes photograph, tele + graph makes telegraph, and bio + scope is not the root pair in biography.
  9. 9. audience
    Audience has the root aud (hear). Portable, export and transport all have port (carry), and in each one something is moved or can be moved.
  10. 10. script
    A script is the written text of a play or movie (script, written). A structure is something built, a telescope is for looking at faraway things and biology is the study of life.
  11. 11. A person's own signature, written by that person
    Auto (self) + graph (write) means self-written, so an autograph is a name signed by the person. Many learners expect a self-writing machine, but the word names the writing, not a machine. A selfie is a picture of yourself, and a book about cars has nothing to do with auto meaning self.
  12. 12. telescope
    Telescope is tele (far) + scope (look at). Photograph and autograph contain graph (write), and describe contains scrib (write).
  13. 13. It comes from a different Latin word meaning a share or a part, not from carry.
    Portion is not built from port (carry); it comes from a Latin word for a share or part. The same letters can start words that are unrelated, so check the meaning of the whole word before you decide that it has a root.
  14. 14. Plants use light to put together their own food.
    Photo means light, so photosynthesis is a way of making food using light. Carrying would be port, living things would be bio, and writing would be graph or scrib. Those roots are not in the word.
  15. 15. Sample answer: Telephone and telescope both have tele, meaning far. A telephone carries voices from far away, and a telescope lets us look at faraway stars. My sentences: I called my cousin on the telephone. We looked at the moon through a telescope.
    Answers can vary. Check that the root meaning is stated correctly (for example tele is far, port is carry, struct is build, graph is write), that the words come from the word bank, and that each sentence uses the word with its real meaning.

Related practice

Prefixes over-, under- and sub-Prefixes un-, re- and pre-Suffixes -er, -or and -istEnglish hub