Word roots — learn them through core images – ShareDocs

spect spekt Respect and suspect are the same eye, aimed differently An eye leaning in close to look at something. Only the direction of the look changes. English 5 uses

port pɔːrt One person carrying a load unlocks ten words A person shouldering a load and walking it from one place to another. Only the cargo and the destination change. English 5 uses

duc/duct duːs · dʌkt A hand out front, pulling everything along Someone walking in front, hand held, taking you somewhere. People, air and work all get led this way. English 5 uses

ject dʒekt One throwing hand: the shot, the refusal, the screen The moment something in your hand is hurled away. Where it is thrown is the whole difference. English 5 uses

tract trækt One pulling hand, from a tooth to a contract A hand taking hold of something and hauling it your way. Teeth, customers, attention — all get dragged. English 5 uses

mit/miss mɪt · mɪs The moment a closed hand opens and lets go A hand that was gripping something opens and sends it away. Forms, people and signals all leave the hand the same way. English 5 uses

scrib/script skraɪb · skrɪpt The hand that scratched a mark became writing A hand dragging something sharp across a surface, leaving a groove. That groove became the letter. English 5 uses

pos/pon poʊz · poʊn Where you set it down is what the word means The moment you set down what you were holding. Where it lands is the whole story. English 5 uses

fer fɜːr One thing handed from this hand to that one Something lifted out of one hand and passed into another. Money, jobs and patients all travel that way. English 5 uses

ced/cess siːd · ses One step forward turns into process and excess A foot going down in front of the other, again and again. Only how far you walk changes. English 5 uses

ven/vent viːn · vent Footsteps coming your way: events, inventions, and all Footsteps approaching from over there and arriving here. People and happenings both come this way. English 5 uses

press pres One firm push becomes speech and admiration A palm pushing straight down. Whatever is under it shrinks, squeezes out, or keeps the mark. English 5 uses

struct strʌkt Why a manual and a skyscraper share one root Hands stacking pieces one on top of another until a frame stands. Build it up and you have a structure; pull it down and you have destruction. English 5 uses

form fɔːrm Forms, uniforms and information walk out of one mold One mold that decides the outside of whatever you pour in. Fill the mold and you get a form; give everyone the same mold and you get a uniform; swap the mold and the thing becomes something else. English 5 uses

gress/grad ɡres / ɡræd Graduating and getting aggressive are the same step A single step taken with one foot. Forward it is progress; one stair at a time it is gradual; straight at another person it turns into aggression. English 5 uses

vert/vers vɜːrt / vɜːrs Reverse gear and radio ads are the same turn A body pivoting on the spot to face somewhere else. What the word means depends only on which way the turn goes. English 5 uses

cap/cept kæp / sept Accept and except: the same hand, opposite directions A hand reaching out and closing on something. Which word you get depends only on which way the hand pulls. English 5 uses

dict dɪkt A dictionary, a forecast and a verdict are all one spoken word A word going out of the mouth and landing on its target. Where and when it lands is what changes the meaning. English 5 uses

fac/fect fæk / fekt A factory, an effect and perfection are all one making Hands making something that did not exist a moment ago. What comes out of the making is an effect; making it all the way to the end is perfect. English 5 uses

lect/leg lekt / leɡ An election and neglect are decided at the same fingertip Eyes choosing one thing out of many and a hand picking it up. Gather what you pick and it's a collection; lift one person up and it's an election; never pick it up at all and it's neglect. English 5 uses

ten/tain ten / teɪn Containing something and paying attention are the same grip A hand closed tight around something and not letting go. What the word means depends on what is being held, and where. English 5 uses

pend/pens pend / pens Why expensive comes from hanging something up A thing hanging from a string, still swinging, not yet settled on the ground. Nothing is decided while it hangs. English 5 uses

flu fluː Being fluent and catching the flu run in the same stream Water running on and on with nothing blocking it. Words running is fluency, the stream rising and falling is fluctuation, water seeping into someone else is influence. English 5 uses

sist/sta sɪst / stɑː Helping and holding out are the same stance A body standing firm on two feet. Stand beside someone and you are helping; stand your ground and you are insisting; stand facing them and you are resisting. English 5 uses

bene ˈbenɪ The benefits on your payslip and a kind boss share a root A hand reaching across and setting something good down on another person's side. Only the thing being set down changes. English 5 uses

mal mæl A broken machine and a malignant lump: one bad turn Something that was running straight takes one bad turn and heads the wrong way. Only the thing turning changes. English 5 uses

poly ˈpɑːli Your jacket and a five-language colleague run on the same poly The same small thing linked over and over in a row until it is one whole. Only the thing being linked changes. English 5 uses

mono ˈmɑːnoʊ One colour is mono; one company owning the route is mono too A place where several could stand, and exactly one stands there. Only what is left alone changes. English 5 uses

auto ˈɔːtoʊ An automatic door and a disease that attacks its own body No hand is pushing from outside, yet the thing starts moving under its own power. Only who is doing it for themselves changes. English 5 uses

tele ˈtelɪ Telephone, television, telescope all start with the same word Something very far off travels along a single line and arrives right in front of you. Only what crosses over changes. English 5 uses

graph ɡræf A photo and a sales curve are both a scratched mark Something sharp drags across a surface and leaves a mark that stays. Only the tool and the surface change. English 5 uses

log lɑːɡ An apology and a technology are both words set in order Scattered words picked up and stood in a straight, orderly line. Only whose words get lined up changes. English 5 uses

phon fɑːn A phone call and a symphony are the same spreading sound Sound going out from one point in widening rings until it reaches somebody's ear. Only the sound changes. English 5 uses

path pæθ Condolence and the pathology lab share one root Something that happened outside travels into your chest and is felt there as it is. Only what comes in changes. English 5 uses

chron krɑːn Chronic pain and syncing two files run on the same line of time Time running left to right as one unbroken line. Only what you set down on that line changes. English 5 uses

geo ˈdʒiːoʊ Geography and heat from underground: one lump of earth The ground under your feet taken as one whole, then drawn on, dug into, or measured out. Only what you do with it changes. English 5 uses

bio ˈbaɪoʊ An antibiotic and a fingerprint clock-in both mark what is alive Leaning in close to something that looked still and finding it warm, breathing, stirring, growing. Only what turns out to be alive changes. English 5 uses

therm θɜːrm A thermometer and a soup flask are the same rising heat Invisible warmth rising and falling. Only whether you measure it, trap it, or lose it changes. English 5 uses

vis/vid vɪz / vɪd Why 'visit' and 'evidence' share one root Something hidden pulled out where the eyes can land on it, and a line of sight settling onto it. English 5 uses

aud ɔːd Why a tax audit has 'hearing' inside it An ear standing open, and sound travelling into it until it lands. English 5 uses

man/manu mæn / ˈmænjuː The hand hiding in 'manual' and 'manager' A palm closing around a thing, and the work getting done inside that hand. English 5 uses

ped pɛd What a pedal, a pedestrian and 'expedite' share A single foot on the ground: pressing down, walking on, getting caught and then freed. English 5 uses

corp kɔːrp Why a company comes from the word for 'body' Scattered pieces drawn together into one body, and that body then moving as a single lump. English

anim ˈænɪm The breath inside 'animation' and 'unanimous' Breath entering something that was sitting still, until it begins to stir on its own. English 5 uses

ver vɜːr The 'true' hiding inside the word 'very' A claim laid side by side with the real thing, checked against it, and stamped when the two match. English

nov nɑːv Why a novel and a renovation share one root Something never used before set down for the first time in the place of the old. English 5 uses

sol sɑːl Why the sun and being alone share one root One single thing left in a wide empty space, the way there is only one sun in an empty sky. English 5 uses

magn mæɡn A magnifying glass and a 'magnificent' view, one root The edges of a small thing pushing outward in every direction until it swells big. English 5 uses

brev brɛv Why a briefing and a briefcase share one root Something that ran long with its end snipped off, leaving a piece the length of one finger joint. English 5 uses

plic/plex plɪk / plɛks Complicated and simple differ by how many folds A hand folding one sheet of paper: one fold and you still see inside, many folds and you cannot. English 5 uses

ambul ˈæmbjʊl The walking hidden inside 'ambulance' Two feet swinging past each other, one after the other, keeping on walking. English 5 uses

sens sɛns A door sensor and 'that makes sense' share a root Something touching from outside and carrying through the skin until it is noticed within. English 5 uses