Roots Unit 1 Definitions

1. A-, AB-, ABS- (away; from; off)

Avert: turned away from; look away from something so that you do not see it

Abnormal: out of the ordinary; not normal

Abstain: PPV refrain; to keep oneself from doing something

Abduct: take someone away by force

Abrupt: sudden and unexpected; unfriendly

Abstract: not something real that you can touch only an idea

Aversion: a strong dislike of something or someone

2. A-, AN- (not; without)

Apathy: lack of concern; not being interested

Atheist/atheism: (ist= one who) one who does not believe in the existence of a God

Anesthesia: loss of sensation or feeling; unable to feel pain

Anonymous: nameless; authorless

Amoral: (al= of or pertaining too; characterized by; etc) having no moral standards at all

Anarchy/Anarchist: complete absence of governmental rule; no effective government

Anemia: a medical condition in which there are too few red cells in your blood

3. ACR, ACRO (high; height; topmost)

Acronym: letter combinations such as NATO, WACS, ECV; accumulation of the beginning letters of a compound term

Acrobat: high performer; someone who entertains people by doing difficult physical actions such as walking on their hands or balancing on a high rope, especially at a circus

Acrophobia: (phobia= abnormal fear, hatred, dislike) abnormal fear of great heights or high places

Acropolis: high part of an ancient Greek City; hilltop, often the highest hill in area; steep hill that’s the geographic & cultural center of a city;"high point" or citadel of an ancient Greek city, like Acropolis in Athens

4. ALT, ALTI (high; height)

Altar: raised structure; a holy table or surface used in religious ceremonies

Altimeter: (meter= a measure; a measurement) height recorder; an instrument used for measuring heights

Altitude: height above sea level; the height of an object or place above the sea

5. AMBI (both)

Ambidextrous: using both hands with equal ability

Ambivalent: mixed feelings; not sure whether you want or like something or not

Ambivert: both introverted & extroverted

Ambilateral: Affecting both sides of the body, or of an organ

6. ANT-, ANTI- (against; opposite)

Antonym: a word directly opposite of another word in meaning

Antipathy: a feeling of dislike or aversion

Antibiotic: a drug that is used to kill bacteria and cure infections

Antifreeze: a liquid that is put in the water in car engines to stop it from freezing

Antacid: a substance that gets rid of the burning feeling in your stomach when you have eaten/drunk too much

Antitoxin: a medicine or substance produced by your body which stops the effects of a poison