Review: Unlocking a Brand-New Technical Term

Combine affixes, roots, etymology, and context to decode an unfamiliar term from any subject.

Here is everything in one routine, applied to a word most grade 8 students have never seen. 'The geologist explained that the region was seismically inactive, so the new bridge did not need costly reinforcement. ' Seismically: seism comes from a Greek word for shaking or earthquake (you may know 'seismograph'); -ic makes an adjective; -ally makes an adverb. So: in a way related to earthquakes. Inactive: in- (not) + active. The phrase means earthquakes do not happen there.

Reinforcement: re- (again) + in + force (strength) + -ment (the act of): the act of adding strength. Now check with context: a geologist would talk about earthquakes, and a bridge in an earthquake-free area would not need extra strengthening. Every piece fits. Notice what you used: a root, three suffixes, two prefixes, a related word, and the sentence itself. That is the full toolkit, and with it no technical term is completely unreadable.

• 1Use every tool: affixes, roots, related words, and context.
• 2Translate parts, then assemble a meaning.
• 3Check the meaning against the whole sentence.