Unlocking Words: Exploring Root Words
A Grade 5 ELA worksheet focusing on identifying and understanding root words to build vocabulary and comprehension skills.
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Unlocking Words: Exploring Root Words
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Read each question carefully and follow the instructions to complete the activities. This worksheet will help you understand root words and how they form new words.
Just like a plant has roots that anchor it and provide its basic structure, many English words have root words. A root word is the most basic part of a word. It carries the main meaning and cannot be broken down into smaller meaningful parts. Prefixes (added to the beginning) and suffixes (added to the end) can be attached to root words to create new words with different meanings or grammatical functions. Understanding root words can help you figure out the meaning of many unfamiliar words!
1. The root word of 'unbelievable' is .
2. The root word of 'preview' is .
3. The root word of 'readable' is .
4. The root word of 'reheat' is .
5. The root word of 'transport' is .
For each root word, write two new words that use that root. Then, explain the meaning of one of your new words.
1. Root: 'rupt' (meaning break)
New Word 1:
New Word 2:
Meaning of one new word:
2. Root: 'port' (meaning carry)
New Word 1:
New Word 2:
Meaning of one new word:
1. Which of the following words contains the root word 'vis' (meaning see)?
invisible
visitor
vision
all of the above
2. What is the root word in 'autograph'?
auto
graph
auto
both a and b
1. A root word can always stand alone as a complete word.
True
False
2. Adding a prefix to a root word changes its meaning.
True
False
Match each root word on the left with its correct meaning on the right.
1. act
a. water
2. aqua
b. hear
3. aud
c. do
4. bio
d. life
Write a short paragraph (3-5 sentences) using at least three words that contain a root word. Underline each word that contains a root word you used.