Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of...

57
The Benefits of Etymology in the Vocabulary Development of Greek ESL Students Konstantinos Chatzisavvas Chatzisavvas K, (2005), The Benefits of Etymology in the Vocabulary Development of Greek ESL Students, study (Instruction and Curriculum / ESL, KEAN UNIVERSITY, NJ, USA) Contents Abstract. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Literature Review. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Materials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Analysis of the Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Roots and Prefixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Pre-test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Explanation of the Pre-test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Post-test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Explanation of the Post-test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 The Greek Alphabet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Transcript of Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of...

Page 1: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

The Benefits of Etymology in the Vocabulary Development of Greek ESL Students

Konstantinos Chatzisavvas Chatzisavvas K (2005) The Benefits of Etymology in the Vocabulary Development of Greek ESL Students study (Instruction and Curriculum ESL KEAN UNIVERSITY NJ USA) Contents

Abstract 3 Introduction 4 Literature Review 6 Methodology 19

Design 19 Materials 20 Procedure 24 Analysis of the Data 25 Conclusion 27 References 29 Roots and Prefixes 31 Pre-test 37 Explanation of the Pre-test 43 Post-test 56 Explanation of the Post-test 51 The Greek Alphabet 54 Graphs 57

Chatzisavvas 1

Abstract A study examined if etymology is useful for vocabulary

development in English as a Second Language classrooms There

was an investigation as to whether Greek the studentsrsquo native

language has an impact on learning new lexicon in English

The subjects obtained a pre- and post-test to assess the

knowledge of the English vocabulary Results proved that

etymology has a positive impact when learning new words When

students compare words from their native language to words

from the target language they can learn more words more

easily

Chatzisavvas 2

Introduction

Etymology ldquothe scientific study of the origins and

history of the changing meanings and forms of wordsrdquo (Pierson

1989) makes a difference in learning a new language Using

etymology students can learn new words faster and more easily

because they compare and contrast each foreign word with

similar words in their native language The purpose of this

study is to examine the impact of etymology in acquiring the

English language within a particular context Important to the

study is the link between English words learned by students

and their native language

To test if etymology makes a difference in learning

there will be two groups learning new words in English which

is studentsrsquo second language Studentsrsquo native language Greek

should be taken into account since we need the first language

to compare words in the target and native tongues

Students in Group A will learn new words without the help of

etymology Group B will learn new words with the help of

etymology Doing so students in Group B will search for

Chatzisavvas 3

similarities between their native language and the second

language As a result students in Group B will study

vocabulary within meaningful contexts An example will

illustrate this point The word polygon (πολυγώνιο) has the word

ldquopolyrdquo as a prefix meaning too much and the root ldquogoniordquo

meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου 1995) Therefore

polygon means too many angles This is an easy word for Greek

speakers because they know what the prefix and the root of the

word mean Following this example etymology makes a

difference in learning another language (Pitman 2003)

This study of the impact of etymology will take place in

Greek ESL classrooms Students participating in the study will

learn the English language through the help of their native

language by using etymology and thus trace several thousands

of words in the Greek and English language Etymology will

also help the students find the similarities between the

target and native language These will show connections among

some words in the two languages and make them more meaningful

as a result This circumstance offers evidence of cognitive

learning that is the new English words are taught through

the help of prior knowledge something that exists in long

term memory or even in ESL studentsrsquo native language

Chatzisavvas 4

Literature Review

etymology

Using etymology to teach ESL can help students learn more

English words It can also help scientists doctors and

lawyers acquire any language in depth At the same time it

might be misleading difficult or confusing If studentsrsquo

native language and the target language share similarities

students will find learning a second language much easier

(Maylath 1997) On the contrary there is a great chance that

students will understand the similarities between languages

and they will be able to get the meaning of the words if

teachers use etymology patterns in classroom (Holmes Thomas

Keffer and Ronald 1995) Teachers need to instruct students

about the prefixes roots and suffixes in English Almost

fifty per cent of the English words are complex and they can

be more understandable through the study of the root of each

word (Pitman 2003)

Some other linguists argue that teaching etymology in

classroom can help students whose native language is not

Chatzisavvas 5

related to English at all such as Chinese Arabic and others

(Bellomo 1999) Teachers need to teach prefixes roots and

suffixes in class even if these are not related to studentsrsquo

native tongue Of course students who have Latin and Greek

backgrounds will be more at an advantage The point is that

etymology helps non-native English speakers expand their

English vocabulary (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) It is more helpful

to students that have a European language as their native

tongue

If teachers analyze and compare each word to studentsrsquo

native language they will not have a problem memorizing the

new words in L2 For example when students learn the word

ldquogumrdquo teachers should mention the word ldquoγόμαrdquo (goma) in Greek

This way helps students learn a new word in English with the

help of their native language This way of teaching a foreign

language solves one of the biggest problems for anyone who

learns a foreign language because they can learn a huge number

of words just by using etymology (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) In

this case Greek students do not know that they already knew

the word ldquoimpermeablerdquo

If students use their native language in learning a

foreign language they will be able to guess a lot of words

correctly The reason is that European languages and English

share a huge amount of common vocabulary In some cases

Chatzisavvas 6

students need help finding the similarities between their

native and target language Moreover students learn more

words easily if teachers explain why a word is written the way

it is (Ilson 1983) For instance some Greek consonants are

transmitted with double consonants in the Latin alphabet such

as lsquoχrsquo becomes lsquochrsquo (χαρισματικό = charismatic) or lsquofrsquo

becomes lsquophrsquo (φιλοσοφία = philosophy) Instructed in this

manner students grasp a more in-depth meaning to each word

and are therefore able to commit it to memory

Furthermore students will remember the words that are

taught with the help of etymology since these words exist in

their native language This way learning becomes meaningful

ldquoa quality of learning which is related to prior learning and

thus is more likely to be retained and generalized to other

learningrdquo (Pierson 1989) When using etymology in class

students learn something that they already know They build

new knowledge from what they learned in the past This

practice makes it less likely that students forget the new

words in L2 The words they study are familiar and usable and

they learn how to use these words in different ways In other

words students are more likely to engage in this learning

involving etymology since they can totally relate to their

native language Some linguists regard etymology as extremely

helpful in learning new words

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 2: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 1

Abstract A study examined if etymology is useful for vocabulary

development in English as a Second Language classrooms There

was an investigation as to whether Greek the studentsrsquo native

language has an impact on learning new lexicon in English

The subjects obtained a pre- and post-test to assess the

knowledge of the English vocabulary Results proved that

etymology has a positive impact when learning new words When

students compare words from their native language to words

from the target language they can learn more words more

easily

Chatzisavvas 2

Introduction

Etymology ldquothe scientific study of the origins and

history of the changing meanings and forms of wordsrdquo (Pierson

1989) makes a difference in learning a new language Using

etymology students can learn new words faster and more easily

because they compare and contrast each foreign word with

similar words in their native language The purpose of this

study is to examine the impact of etymology in acquiring the

English language within a particular context Important to the

study is the link between English words learned by students

and their native language

To test if etymology makes a difference in learning

there will be two groups learning new words in English which

is studentsrsquo second language Studentsrsquo native language Greek

should be taken into account since we need the first language

to compare words in the target and native tongues

Students in Group A will learn new words without the help of

etymology Group B will learn new words with the help of

etymology Doing so students in Group B will search for

Chatzisavvas 3

similarities between their native language and the second

language As a result students in Group B will study

vocabulary within meaningful contexts An example will

illustrate this point The word polygon (πολυγώνιο) has the word

ldquopolyrdquo as a prefix meaning too much and the root ldquogoniordquo

meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου 1995) Therefore

polygon means too many angles This is an easy word for Greek

speakers because they know what the prefix and the root of the

word mean Following this example etymology makes a

difference in learning another language (Pitman 2003)

This study of the impact of etymology will take place in

Greek ESL classrooms Students participating in the study will

learn the English language through the help of their native

language by using etymology and thus trace several thousands

of words in the Greek and English language Etymology will

also help the students find the similarities between the

target and native language These will show connections among

some words in the two languages and make them more meaningful

as a result This circumstance offers evidence of cognitive

learning that is the new English words are taught through

the help of prior knowledge something that exists in long

term memory or even in ESL studentsrsquo native language

Chatzisavvas 4

Literature Review

etymology

Using etymology to teach ESL can help students learn more

English words It can also help scientists doctors and

lawyers acquire any language in depth At the same time it

might be misleading difficult or confusing If studentsrsquo

native language and the target language share similarities

students will find learning a second language much easier

(Maylath 1997) On the contrary there is a great chance that

students will understand the similarities between languages

and they will be able to get the meaning of the words if

teachers use etymology patterns in classroom (Holmes Thomas

Keffer and Ronald 1995) Teachers need to instruct students

about the prefixes roots and suffixes in English Almost

fifty per cent of the English words are complex and they can

be more understandable through the study of the root of each

word (Pitman 2003)

Some other linguists argue that teaching etymology in

classroom can help students whose native language is not

Chatzisavvas 5

related to English at all such as Chinese Arabic and others

(Bellomo 1999) Teachers need to teach prefixes roots and

suffixes in class even if these are not related to studentsrsquo

native tongue Of course students who have Latin and Greek

backgrounds will be more at an advantage The point is that

etymology helps non-native English speakers expand their

English vocabulary (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) It is more helpful

to students that have a European language as their native

tongue

If teachers analyze and compare each word to studentsrsquo

native language they will not have a problem memorizing the

new words in L2 For example when students learn the word

ldquogumrdquo teachers should mention the word ldquoγόμαrdquo (goma) in Greek

This way helps students learn a new word in English with the

help of their native language This way of teaching a foreign

language solves one of the biggest problems for anyone who

learns a foreign language because they can learn a huge number

of words just by using etymology (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) In

this case Greek students do not know that they already knew

the word ldquoimpermeablerdquo

If students use their native language in learning a

foreign language they will be able to guess a lot of words

correctly The reason is that European languages and English

share a huge amount of common vocabulary In some cases

Chatzisavvas 6

students need help finding the similarities between their

native and target language Moreover students learn more

words easily if teachers explain why a word is written the way

it is (Ilson 1983) For instance some Greek consonants are

transmitted with double consonants in the Latin alphabet such

as lsquoχrsquo becomes lsquochrsquo (χαρισματικό = charismatic) or lsquofrsquo

becomes lsquophrsquo (φιλοσοφία = philosophy) Instructed in this

manner students grasp a more in-depth meaning to each word

and are therefore able to commit it to memory

Furthermore students will remember the words that are

taught with the help of etymology since these words exist in

their native language This way learning becomes meaningful

ldquoa quality of learning which is related to prior learning and

thus is more likely to be retained and generalized to other

learningrdquo (Pierson 1989) When using etymology in class

students learn something that they already know They build

new knowledge from what they learned in the past This

practice makes it less likely that students forget the new

words in L2 The words they study are familiar and usable and

they learn how to use these words in different ways In other

words students are more likely to engage in this learning

involving etymology since they can totally relate to their

native language Some linguists regard etymology as extremely

helpful in learning new words

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 3: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 2

Introduction

Etymology ldquothe scientific study of the origins and

history of the changing meanings and forms of wordsrdquo (Pierson

1989) makes a difference in learning a new language Using

etymology students can learn new words faster and more easily

because they compare and contrast each foreign word with

similar words in their native language The purpose of this

study is to examine the impact of etymology in acquiring the

English language within a particular context Important to the

study is the link between English words learned by students

and their native language

To test if etymology makes a difference in learning

there will be two groups learning new words in English which

is studentsrsquo second language Studentsrsquo native language Greek

should be taken into account since we need the first language

to compare words in the target and native tongues

Students in Group A will learn new words without the help of

etymology Group B will learn new words with the help of

etymology Doing so students in Group B will search for

Chatzisavvas 3

similarities between their native language and the second

language As a result students in Group B will study

vocabulary within meaningful contexts An example will

illustrate this point The word polygon (πολυγώνιο) has the word

ldquopolyrdquo as a prefix meaning too much and the root ldquogoniordquo

meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου 1995) Therefore

polygon means too many angles This is an easy word for Greek

speakers because they know what the prefix and the root of the

word mean Following this example etymology makes a

difference in learning another language (Pitman 2003)

This study of the impact of etymology will take place in

Greek ESL classrooms Students participating in the study will

learn the English language through the help of their native

language by using etymology and thus trace several thousands

of words in the Greek and English language Etymology will

also help the students find the similarities between the

target and native language These will show connections among

some words in the two languages and make them more meaningful

as a result This circumstance offers evidence of cognitive

learning that is the new English words are taught through

the help of prior knowledge something that exists in long

term memory or even in ESL studentsrsquo native language

Chatzisavvas 4

Literature Review

etymology

Using etymology to teach ESL can help students learn more

English words It can also help scientists doctors and

lawyers acquire any language in depth At the same time it

might be misleading difficult or confusing If studentsrsquo

native language and the target language share similarities

students will find learning a second language much easier

(Maylath 1997) On the contrary there is a great chance that

students will understand the similarities between languages

and they will be able to get the meaning of the words if

teachers use etymology patterns in classroom (Holmes Thomas

Keffer and Ronald 1995) Teachers need to instruct students

about the prefixes roots and suffixes in English Almost

fifty per cent of the English words are complex and they can

be more understandable through the study of the root of each

word (Pitman 2003)

Some other linguists argue that teaching etymology in

classroom can help students whose native language is not

Chatzisavvas 5

related to English at all such as Chinese Arabic and others

(Bellomo 1999) Teachers need to teach prefixes roots and

suffixes in class even if these are not related to studentsrsquo

native tongue Of course students who have Latin and Greek

backgrounds will be more at an advantage The point is that

etymology helps non-native English speakers expand their

English vocabulary (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) It is more helpful

to students that have a European language as their native

tongue

If teachers analyze and compare each word to studentsrsquo

native language they will not have a problem memorizing the

new words in L2 For example when students learn the word

ldquogumrdquo teachers should mention the word ldquoγόμαrdquo (goma) in Greek

This way helps students learn a new word in English with the

help of their native language This way of teaching a foreign

language solves one of the biggest problems for anyone who

learns a foreign language because they can learn a huge number

of words just by using etymology (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) In

this case Greek students do not know that they already knew

the word ldquoimpermeablerdquo

If students use their native language in learning a

foreign language they will be able to guess a lot of words

correctly The reason is that European languages and English

share a huge amount of common vocabulary In some cases

Chatzisavvas 6

students need help finding the similarities between their

native and target language Moreover students learn more

words easily if teachers explain why a word is written the way

it is (Ilson 1983) For instance some Greek consonants are

transmitted with double consonants in the Latin alphabet such

as lsquoχrsquo becomes lsquochrsquo (χαρισματικό = charismatic) or lsquofrsquo

becomes lsquophrsquo (φιλοσοφία = philosophy) Instructed in this

manner students grasp a more in-depth meaning to each word

and are therefore able to commit it to memory

Furthermore students will remember the words that are

taught with the help of etymology since these words exist in

their native language This way learning becomes meaningful

ldquoa quality of learning which is related to prior learning and

thus is more likely to be retained and generalized to other

learningrdquo (Pierson 1989) When using etymology in class

students learn something that they already know They build

new knowledge from what they learned in the past This

practice makes it less likely that students forget the new

words in L2 The words they study are familiar and usable and

they learn how to use these words in different ways In other

words students are more likely to engage in this learning

involving etymology since they can totally relate to their

native language Some linguists regard etymology as extremely

helpful in learning new words

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 4: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 3

similarities between their native language and the second

language As a result students in Group B will study

vocabulary within meaningful contexts An example will

illustrate this point The word polygon (πολυγώνιο) has the word

ldquopolyrdquo as a prefix meaning too much and the root ldquogoniordquo

meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου 1995) Therefore

polygon means too many angles This is an easy word for Greek

speakers because they know what the prefix and the root of the

word mean Following this example etymology makes a

difference in learning another language (Pitman 2003)

This study of the impact of etymology will take place in

Greek ESL classrooms Students participating in the study will

learn the English language through the help of their native

language by using etymology and thus trace several thousands

of words in the Greek and English language Etymology will

also help the students find the similarities between the

target and native language These will show connections among

some words in the two languages and make them more meaningful

as a result This circumstance offers evidence of cognitive

learning that is the new English words are taught through

the help of prior knowledge something that exists in long

term memory or even in ESL studentsrsquo native language

Chatzisavvas 4

Literature Review

etymology

Using etymology to teach ESL can help students learn more

English words It can also help scientists doctors and

lawyers acquire any language in depth At the same time it

might be misleading difficult or confusing If studentsrsquo

native language and the target language share similarities

students will find learning a second language much easier

(Maylath 1997) On the contrary there is a great chance that

students will understand the similarities between languages

and they will be able to get the meaning of the words if

teachers use etymology patterns in classroom (Holmes Thomas

Keffer and Ronald 1995) Teachers need to instruct students

about the prefixes roots and suffixes in English Almost

fifty per cent of the English words are complex and they can

be more understandable through the study of the root of each

word (Pitman 2003)

Some other linguists argue that teaching etymology in

classroom can help students whose native language is not

Chatzisavvas 5

related to English at all such as Chinese Arabic and others

(Bellomo 1999) Teachers need to teach prefixes roots and

suffixes in class even if these are not related to studentsrsquo

native tongue Of course students who have Latin and Greek

backgrounds will be more at an advantage The point is that

etymology helps non-native English speakers expand their

English vocabulary (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) It is more helpful

to students that have a European language as their native

tongue

If teachers analyze and compare each word to studentsrsquo

native language they will not have a problem memorizing the

new words in L2 For example when students learn the word

ldquogumrdquo teachers should mention the word ldquoγόμαrdquo (goma) in Greek

This way helps students learn a new word in English with the

help of their native language This way of teaching a foreign

language solves one of the biggest problems for anyone who

learns a foreign language because they can learn a huge number

of words just by using etymology (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) In

this case Greek students do not know that they already knew

the word ldquoimpermeablerdquo

If students use their native language in learning a

foreign language they will be able to guess a lot of words

correctly The reason is that European languages and English

share a huge amount of common vocabulary In some cases

Chatzisavvas 6

students need help finding the similarities between their

native and target language Moreover students learn more

words easily if teachers explain why a word is written the way

it is (Ilson 1983) For instance some Greek consonants are

transmitted with double consonants in the Latin alphabet such

as lsquoχrsquo becomes lsquochrsquo (χαρισματικό = charismatic) or lsquofrsquo

becomes lsquophrsquo (φιλοσοφία = philosophy) Instructed in this

manner students grasp a more in-depth meaning to each word

and are therefore able to commit it to memory

Furthermore students will remember the words that are

taught with the help of etymology since these words exist in

their native language This way learning becomes meaningful

ldquoa quality of learning which is related to prior learning and

thus is more likely to be retained and generalized to other

learningrdquo (Pierson 1989) When using etymology in class

students learn something that they already know They build

new knowledge from what they learned in the past This

practice makes it less likely that students forget the new

words in L2 The words they study are familiar and usable and

they learn how to use these words in different ways In other

words students are more likely to engage in this learning

involving etymology since they can totally relate to their

native language Some linguists regard etymology as extremely

helpful in learning new words

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 5: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 4

Literature Review

etymology

Using etymology to teach ESL can help students learn more

English words It can also help scientists doctors and

lawyers acquire any language in depth At the same time it

might be misleading difficult or confusing If studentsrsquo

native language and the target language share similarities

students will find learning a second language much easier

(Maylath 1997) On the contrary there is a great chance that

students will understand the similarities between languages

and they will be able to get the meaning of the words if

teachers use etymology patterns in classroom (Holmes Thomas

Keffer and Ronald 1995) Teachers need to instruct students

about the prefixes roots and suffixes in English Almost

fifty per cent of the English words are complex and they can

be more understandable through the study of the root of each

word (Pitman 2003)

Some other linguists argue that teaching etymology in

classroom can help students whose native language is not

Chatzisavvas 5

related to English at all such as Chinese Arabic and others

(Bellomo 1999) Teachers need to teach prefixes roots and

suffixes in class even if these are not related to studentsrsquo

native tongue Of course students who have Latin and Greek

backgrounds will be more at an advantage The point is that

etymology helps non-native English speakers expand their

English vocabulary (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) It is more helpful

to students that have a European language as their native

tongue

If teachers analyze and compare each word to studentsrsquo

native language they will not have a problem memorizing the

new words in L2 For example when students learn the word

ldquogumrdquo teachers should mention the word ldquoγόμαrdquo (goma) in Greek

This way helps students learn a new word in English with the

help of their native language This way of teaching a foreign

language solves one of the biggest problems for anyone who

learns a foreign language because they can learn a huge number

of words just by using etymology (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) In

this case Greek students do not know that they already knew

the word ldquoimpermeablerdquo

If students use their native language in learning a

foreign language they will be able to guess a lot of words

correctly The reason is that European languages and English

share a huge amount of common vocabulary In some cases

Chatzisavvas 6

students need help finding the similarities between their

native and target language Moreover students learn more

words easily if teachers explain why a word is written the way

it is (Ilson 1983) For instance some Greek consonants are

transmitted with double consonants in the Latin alphabet such

as lsquoχrsquo becomes lsquochrsquo (χαρισματικό = charismatic) or lsquofrsquo

becomes lsquophrsquo (φιλοσοφία = philosophy) Instructed in this

manner students grasp a more in-depth meaning to each word

and are therefore able to commit it to memory

Furthermore students will remember the words that are

taught with the help of etymology since these words exist in

their native language This way learning becomes meaningful

ldquoa quality of learning which is related to prior learning and

thus is more likely to be retained and generalized to other

learningrdquo (Pierson 1989) When using etymology in class

students learn something that they already know They build

new knowledge from what they learned in the past This

practice makes it less likely that students forget the new

words in L2 The words they study are familiar and usable and

they learn how to use these words in different ways In other

words students are more likely to engage in this learning

involving etymology since they can totally relate to their

native language Some linguists regard etymology as extremely

helpful in learning new words

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 6: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 5

related to English at all such as Chinese Arabic and others

(Bellomo 1999) Teachers need to teach prefixes roots and

suffixes in class even if these are not related to studentsrsquo

native tongue Of course students who have Latin and Greek

backgrounds will be more at an advantage The point is that

etymology helps non-native English speakers expand their

English vocabulary (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) It is more helpful

to students that have a European language as their native

tongue

If teachers analyze and compare each word to studentsrsquo

native language they will not have a problem memorizing the

new words in L2 For example when students learn the word

ldquogumrdquo teachers should mention the word ldquoγόμαrdquo (goma) in Greek

This way helps students learn a new word in English with the

help of their native language This way of teaching a foreign

language solves one of the biggest problems for anyone who

learns a foreign language because they can learn a huge number

of words just by using etymology (Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) In

this case Greek students do not know that they already knew

the word ldquoimpermeablerdquo

If students use their native language in learning a

foreign language they will be able to guess a lot of words

correctly The reason is that European languages and English

share a huge amount of common vocabulary In some cases

Chatzisavvas 6

students need help finding the similarities between their

native and target language Moreover students learn more

words easily if teachers explain why a word is written the way

it is (Ilson 1983) For instance some Greek consonants are

transmitted with double consonants in the Latin alphabet such

as lsquoχrsquo becomes lsquochrsquo (χαρισματικό = charismatic) or lsquofrsquo

becomes lsquophrsquo (φιλοσοφία = philosophy) Instructed in this

manner students grasp a more in-depth meaning to each word

and are therefore able to commit it to memory

Furthermore students will remember the words that are

taught with the help of etymology since these words exist in

their native language This way learning becomes meaningful

ldquoa quality of learning which is related to prior learning and

thus is more likely to be retained and generalized to other

learningrdquo (Pierson 1989) When using etymology in class

students learn something that they already know They build

new knowledge from what they learned in the past This

practice makes it less likely that students forget the new

words in L2 The words they study are familiar and usable and

they learn how to use these words in different ways In other

words students are more likely to engage in this learning

involving etymology since they can totally relate to their

native language Some linguists regard etymology as extremely

helpful in learning new words

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 7: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 6

students need help finding the similarities between their

native and target language Moreover students learn more

words easily if teachers explain why a word is written the way

it is (Ilson 1983) For instance some Greek consonants are

transmitted with double consonants in the Latin alphabet such

as lsquoχrsquo becomes lsquochrsquo (χαρισματικό = charismatic) or lsquofrsquo

becomes lsquophrsquo (φιλοσοφία = philosophy) Instructed in this

manner students grasp a more in-depth meaning to each word

and are therefore able to commit it to memory

Furthermore students will remember the words that are

taught with the help of etymology since these words exist in

their native language This way learning becomes meaningful

ldquoa quality of learning which is related to prior learning and

thus is more likely to be retained and generalized to other

learningrdquo (Pierson 1989) When using etymology in class

students learn something that they already know They build

new knowledge from what they learned in the past This

practice makes it less likely that students forget the new

words in L2 The words they study are familiar and usable and

they learn how to use these words in different ways In other

words students are more likely to engage in this learning

involving etymology since they can totally relate to their

native language Some linguists regard etymology as extremely

helpful in learning new words

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 8: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 7

It is perhaps the most neglected tool in our bag of devices particularly in light of its great potential Before we inquire how we can best employ etymology as a device for teaching language use we should ask ourselves what a word is (Laird)

It will be easier for ESL students (students whose English is

their second language) to learn English if teachers show the

similarities between studentsrsquo native language and the target

language (if they share similarities) because they will not be

going through the process of memorization (Pierson 1989)

This is because etymology helps students remember more English

words It also makes learning fun and it is helpful when

learning the meaning of unknown words

Most people who have never been taught better methods try to learn words one by one whereas usually they could learn a dozen of words more easily and in ways that will help them to understand better and to remember longer if they learn words in related families(Laird)

It seems really tedious and complicated to learn new words by

memorizing them The result is that most people learn these

words but because they do not use them they forget them In

contrast teaching with etymology aims to have students

comprehend each word rather than just memorize each word one

by one Consequently etymology can have a positive impact in

learning new words It is a teaching method that makes

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 9: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 8

learning more simple meaningful and pleasant Also the new

lexicon makes sense to learners

The new lexicon makes sense to learners because the study

of language focuses on the similarity between the target

language and the native language which is stored in long term

memory ldquothe memory system used for relatively permanent

storage of meaningful informationrdquo (Coon 2001) Almost all of

the words in our native language are stored in there The

problem when teaching a foreign vocabulary without using

etymology is that usually students process these words in

short term memory where it cannot hold a huge amount of

information (Solagne and Sao 2001) Sometimes they do not use

these words and they forget them If teachers show the

similarity between studentsrsquo native and target language

students will memorize the English lexicon in long term memory

(Thelen 1986) If we want students to memorize English words

and remember them there must be an etymological connection

between the target and native language (Moras 2001)

Etymology might benefit some students more than others

because of their native language For example students whose

language comes from Latin Greek or German might be more

advantaged because English is a combination of these languages

Chinese students can learn English through etymology but they

need to put more effort since they do not know the roots of

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 10: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 9

the words Studentsrsquo first language makes a difference in

learning another language A French student can learn Italian

faster rather than Japanese This is because French and

Italian come from Latin

In brief most linguists support the fact that etymology

helps ESL students learn more English words (Thelen 1986)

Some others argue that studentsrsquo native language is not

important in using etymology in classrooms On the other hand

other professors using etymology in classroom state that it

might be misleading (Small 1987) The point is that there are

several thousands of similar words in the European languages

Some linguists believe in the Indo-European theory some

others believe that the Greco-Roman civilization influenced

the European languages in a high degree Whatever the answer

is we can help students and teach them new words by showing

similarities between languages

Studentsrsquo Native Language and Its Aid in Teaching ESL

Studentrsquos native language plays a main position in

learning a new language In this case the Greek language

helps learners enhance their lexicon in English Also the

study of etymology supports the learning of scientific terms

such as melanoma (μελάνομα) astigmatism (αστιγματισμός)

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 11: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 10

chiropractor (χειροπράκτορας) and so many others Every year

thousands of doctors pharmacists and other educated people

study Classical Greek or Latin because these two languages

help them learn the scientific lexicon with the help of

etymology Further several thousands of abstract words have

been taken from the Greek language such as aroma

(αρωμα) problem (πρόβλημα) stigma (στίγμα) drama (δράμα) and

idea (ιδέα) (Maurice and Gilbert 2003) If Greek students know

how to transmit each word from the Greek to Latin alphabet

there will not be a problem to identify and understand these

kinds of words

However there are thousands of words that have changed

completely in a point that nobody can recognize them as Greek

words such as the word ldquoeleemosynerdquo (ελεημοσύνη) became ldquoalmsrdquo

in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) In this case it will be more

difficult to teach students the similarities between Greek and

English words Another example would be the word ldquofemalerdquo

ldquoThe word goes back to Greek lsquothelazeinrsquo (θηλάζειν) to suckle

and then with some changes Latin lsquofelarersquo to suck and Latin

lsquofeminarsquo woman Associations with male may have influenced

The English form of the wordrdquo (Gorrell 2001 57) Therefore

some words that come from the same root change and they can

be confusing when learning English Sometimes in order to

remember the origin of the word female it is difficult to

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 12: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 11

explain to the students whose native language is Greek that

the word female originates from the Greek word ldquothelazeinrdquo

This is because these two words have a completely different

meaning in Modern Greek and English In this case students

will discover that the answers are not obvious or consistent

(Small 1987) Another example would be the word ldquocouthourosrdquo

(κούθουρος) meaning coward in English (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It

might be difficult for students to find the similarity between

these two words in their native language and L2 since letters

pronunciation and the meaning changes from one language to

another over a period of time

Another problem that exists in the field of etymology is

that the meaning and articulation of some words change in

languages through years For instance the Greek word ldquoidiotrdquo

coming from the word ldquoιδιώτηςrdquo means someone who thinks only

for their needs or self Besides that this word ended up

meaning something silly

Another example would be in the difference between the

Modern and Ancient Greek pronunciation For instance the

letter z is pronounced as ldquozdrdquo (like wisdom) or as tz (like

pizza) in Ancient Greek (Morwood and Warman 1995) In

contrast ldquozrdquo is pronounced as ldquozebrardquo in Modern Greek (refer

to pages 54-56) There are several words that have been taken

from Ancient Greek and changed into Latin and French and

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 13: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 12

translated into the English language (Maylath 1997) At the

same time there are differences between Ancient and Modern

Greek In this case there might be a huge difference between

the Greek words that exist in the English language and the

words that native Greek students use even if in both cases

they are derived from Ancient Greek Also pronunciation

words and sounds have been changing in the English language

They are relatively stable They change of course and presumably all sounds are changing all the time but they change so slowly that few sounds have been lost from the English language in historic timeshellip (Laird)

Since pronunciation and sounds change there might be

other problems that can make this study more difficult when

learning new words with the help of etymology In this case

students might not be able to connect the similarities between

their native and the target language

Also another case would be that some English words came

from Classical Greek but Modern Greek speakers do not use

them any more However they still exist in the English

language For example the verb ldquoflaeordquo (φλαίω) means that

something rises up (Τζιροπούλου 1995) It is a verb that is

not used in Modern Greek any more but it exists in English as

ldquoinflationrdquo and ldquodeflationrdquo Greek ESL students might have a

hard time recognizing these words because they are not used

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 14: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 13

anymore in the Modern Greek language If students know

Classical Greek it will be easier for them to use etymology

and memorize more Greco words that exist in English

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990) The point is that it is better for

learners to know their native language in depth before they

start using etymology If students acquire the knowledge of

their native language they will improve their second and

third language

If the participants in this study need to learn their

language in depth they need to learn Ancient Greek This is

because it aims to have students learn some main roots

prefixes and suffixes For example the English word

impermeable has the ldquoimrdquo as prefix that means not or

something that is the opposite In Greek it would be ldquoinrdquo

The root ldquopermerdquo can be related to the Greek word ldquoperasmardquo

(πέρασμα) meaning pass and the suffix ldquoablerdquo proves that the

word is an adjective If Greek students first see the word

ldquoimpermeablerdquo they will not understand it On the other hand

students will be able to expand their knowledge in the English

dictionary if they learn one root every day For example if

students remember the word cranium (κρανίον) they will

remember what craniate craniology craniometry and

craniotome because these words have the same root (Pierson

1989)

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 15: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 14

Learning a new word with the use of etymology can also be

taught by stating its history For example the word

ldquodisasterrdquo can be taught in a unique way According to the

Oxford American Dictionary ldquoDisrdquo the prefix of the word

expresses a negation The root of the word ldquoasterrdquo (αστήρ)

means star (Classical Greek and Latin) The word ldquodisasterrdquo

primarily means that the stars were a bad position therefore

a catastrophic event would occur (Τζιροπούλου 1995) Students

are expected to learn the prefixes and some roots of the words

For example the prefix lsquoarsquo stands for lsquonotrsquo or lsquowithoutrsquo the

prefix lsquoabrsquo stands for the meaning lsquoaway fromrsquo lsquoantirsquo stands

for something against (refer to pages 31-36)

Foreign words in studentrsquos native language

Teachers can show the foreign words in studentsrsquo native

language and compare them to similar words in the target

language There are some words in the Greek language that come

from English ldquoIn the meantime other foreign words and modern

terms especially English made their appearance such as okay

sorry thank you booking parking flight one way duty free

video video-club and many othersrdquo (Κολίτσις 1988) There are

a lot of English words that are used every day in the Greek

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 16: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 15

language Teachers can take these words and teach them during

class This way students will have less hard time learning

ESL

In addition there are a lot of Latin or old French words

that exist both in the Greek and English language Moreover

the Greek-Cypriot dialect studentsrsquo dialect has a lot of

Latin Venetian and Old French words because the island used

to be a colony of these empires Studentsrsquo dialect can

absolutely help them learn more English words since there is a

connection between their dialect and the English language For

example the word lsquochairrsquo is lsquoκαρέκλαrsquo (karekla) in Greek

coming from the word lsquokathedrikosrsquo (cathedral) Besides that

the word for chair in Cyprus is lsquotsaerarsquo (τσαέρα) borrowed

from Old French (Κολιτσίς 1986) The French and Italians left

a number of words on the island that can be used to learn

English Teachers on the island can teach English through the

geography of Cyprus For example there is an area called

ldquoFontana Amorozardquo (the fountain of love) The word fountain

means jets of water made to spout for ornamental purposes or

for drinking In the Cypriot dialect lsquofountanarsquo is the tap

Teachers can also take other locations on the island and teach

ESL such as ldquoMare-Monderdquo [Μάρε-Μόντε] (sea-mountain) ldquoBella

Baysrdquo [Μπέλλα Πάϊς] (beautiful country) ldquoLiverardquo [Λιβερά]

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 17: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 16

(coming from the French word ldquoreviererdquo meaning on the coast)

(Χατζηιωάννου 1986)

Moreover the Modern Greek language has a lot of French

Italian or Latin words that are used In the Greek or English

language For example ldquorealismrdquo (Latin) ldquogaragerdquo (French)

and ldquogasrdquo (French) (Κουλάκης 1993) These words should be

taken into account when teaching a new language In some cases

teachers do not show these similarities Furthermore it might

be difficult for some students due to the difference in

pronunciation

The literature review points to the similarities among

languages that support studentsrsquo effort to expand their

lexicon As well the literature highlights some of the

problems with using etymology in language learning This study

will examine if a group of Greek students can learn and

memorize more English words by using their mother tongue in

comparison to those who will learn new words without the help

of etymology It will focus on learning new words by teaching

prefixes roots and suffixes and it will aim to answer if

etymology has a positive or a negative impact in studying a

foreign language

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 18: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 17

Methodology

Subjects

Twelve students between the ages of fourteen and fifteen

participated in this study Group A intermediate II had six

students three male and three female One female is 14 years

old and the rest of the students are fifteen years old Group

B Intermediate I had one male and five female Three of the

female are fourteen years old and the rest of the students

are fifteen years old Some of the participants are a year

older than the rest of their classmates but they are at the

same level of learning English in private schooling On the

other hand the students who are 15 years old have learned

English one year more in public schools This is because

students start learning English when they are on the third

grade Therefore even if this study takes place in a private

school students who are younger have learned English one year

less in public schools

All of the participants have Greek as their first

language and English as their second language Participants

have also been learning Classical Greek and French since the

first grade of Gymnasium The reason why they learn English in

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 19: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 18

private schools is because some of these students will go to

Universities in the United Kingdom and the United States Some

other students take these English classes to obtain several

degrees in English Every year students get prepare for taking

English exams These exams involve reading a text writing an

essay and grammar Therefore students who take place in this

study will be helped because they will learn some techniques

for guessing correct answers for words they do not know One

of these techniques is to teach participants English words

with the help of their native tongue

Design

This study has been designed to examine if the use of

etymology can help Greek ESL students learn more English words

through the similarities between their native and target

language Can etymology have an impact on Greek ESL students

and aid them gain more knowledge in English through their

native language To evaluate the potential impact of etymology

on second language learning participating students will

complete a post-test after a month learning of new English

words in the two different circumstances described

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 20: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 19

Materials

The subjects were given a pre-test with twenty multiple

choice words There were four possible answers related to the

root or prefix of each word and students had to guess the

correct answer Students whose answer got only the root or the

prefix correct received only half point Students who guessed

both the prefix and root correctly received a point One of

the possible answers was not related at all with the correct

answer The pres-tests were intended by the designer they

were designed in this manner because they aimed to get

students to select the correct answer if they knew the roots

and prefixes of each word

Each multiple choice question was taken from an

etymological dictionary (see pages 40-56) The first group

memorized five new words every class period for one month

(each class takes place for one and a half hours twice a week)

Students in the first group had to come up with their own

examples of how they can use each word in sentences Students

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 21: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 20

got a dictation in the next class period This process of

learning took ten minutes every class period

The second group studied new words with the help of

etymology Students analyzed the meaning of the prefix and

roots of each word in the class period for the first ten

minutes They used etymology broke down words like these

get the meaning and combined them together Students also

identified synonyms and antonyms For example students

analyzed the word ldquoignorantrdquo Primarily they had to separate

the word in the prefix root and suffix i-gnor-ant The

prefix ldquoirdquo can be transmitted as ldquoinrdquo (ιν) in Greek meaning

something the opposite The root ldquognorrdquo is related to

knowledge in Greek ldquognorizordquo (γνωρίζω) Therefore ignorant

means someone who does not know or does not want to know

Students also gathered the same root meaning if they presented

with the word recognize They had to learn five words every

class period At the end of the term students got examined in

the words they learned

The two groups Groups A and B got the same words on

this post-test consisting of twenty multiple choice questions

whereby students had to guess the correct prefix and root of

each word Each correct answer was worth one point If

students guessed the prefix or the root correctly they get

only a half point

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 22: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 21

Students who participated in this study were from a

private English tutoring institute in Limassol Cyprus All

students have Greek as their first language and they have

taken ESL for seven years The students also have a background

of Ancient and Modern Greek and they are at the same level of

English in public high schools Besides that some limitations

in this study such as students might not get help by their

parents in English and even in Greek must be taken into

account Another limitation is that students might be speaking

another language at home and therefore they might not be

fluent Greek speakers If so students might not be able to

get the similarity between English and Greek

In the first group students learned new words in the

traditional way by memorizing each word without any help of

etymology The researcher translated each word in their native

language without any other help The second group followed

this technique of etymology when learning new English words

and there was a relationship between Greek and these words

Each word on the pre-test and post-test has a Greek root

or it is a word that comes from Latin Italian English or

French but it is used by the native Greek speakers This is

because recent studies have proved that literacy in L1 helps

literacy growth in L2 The more we know our first language

the more we can achieve in the second language (Bigelow amp

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 23: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 22

Tarone 2004) In this case if students know their native

language in depth they will not have a hard time in answering

these questions

For example Greek students might have less difficulty

determining the correct meaning of the word ldquohemipathiserdquo

because it has a Greek root and prefix (This is a pseudo

word)to half understand somebodyrsquos problems

(a) to half divide a path

(b) to suffer from a blood disease

(c) to create a path for the blood to flow through

(Γιουγκιούκλης 1990)

In this case the first answer is correct Therefore

students who get this correct get one point If they choose

the second option they get half point as it only has the

prefix correct The third answer has its root only correct so

students get only a half point for this The last answer has

its prefix and root incorrect Therefore students do not get

any point for this answer

Students in the second group learned new words with the

help of etymology After three months they completed a post-

test They needed to know all roots that exist in the English

words and several roots This way helped students guess the

correct answer even if they had never heard some of these

words The first group is expected to score lower in the post

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 24: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 23

test because they just learned new words without using

etymology or cognitive thinking This is because even if

students in both groups were at the same level they learnt

new words in a different way in a period of time where we

observed if etymology makes a difference in teaching

Procedure

The instructions were given to the students on the front

page of the pre-post test and explained in their target

language They were also told that their names and scores

would remain anonymous Students were told to guess all

questions related to words they use in their native language

After they had finished participants explained what

strategies they used to guess the correct answer Some of them

explained that they used etymology to understand the root of

each word Some others just guessed

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 25: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 24

Analysis of the data

The answers of the forty (40) questions were put into

table 1 including the averages (means X)

Table 1

Pre-test

X1 X2

1 Constellation 2 3

2detour 4 3

3 revive 0 2

4 decline 2 2

5 Inflation 4 5

6 Insole 3 2

7 semicircle 5 5

8 impermeable 3 3

9 Semidome 1 2

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 26: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 25

10 bipods 3 3

11 Interference 5 4 12 Incline 6 5

13 Indicate 4 5 14 Dilute 7 7

15 discourage 7 8

16 disaster 7 9

17 dismember 3 5

18 indifference 5 3

19 deflation 3 2

20 immortal 2 5

Σχ= 78 83

Post-test

X1 X2

1 pedestrian 8 8

2 aviation 7 75 3 assimilate 4 7 4 assistant 7 7 5 agriculture 5 6 6 destination 6 7 7 dimension 5 6 8 alternative 6 7

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 27: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 26

9 predict 5 8 10 contradict 7 8 11 indicate 4 6 12 disperse 5 6 13 bigamist 5 8 14 brevity 2 4 15 acrostic 7 9 17 amorphous 7 10 18 aspect 4 4 19 antinomy 7 10 20 impetuous 3 4

Σχ = 114 135

Conclusion

The results of this study prove that etymology has a

positive impact in learning a second language The difference

between the two groups of the pre-test is 5 However the

difference of the post-test becomes 21 This confirms that

students can learn more words by comparing L1 and L2 The

graph on page 62 illustrates pre- and post-results presenting

the positive impact of students using etymology as part of

their English language studies

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 28: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 27

Additional anecdotal information provides further

insights into the study that some students in group B found

teaching with etymology fun After a month of teaching with

etymology some participants stated that it was interesting

learning English this way They could also remember some of

the roots Some others stated that it was boring because there

were a lot of ancient routes they had to memorize A few of

them seemed to hate anything related to Ancient Greek Other

students just guessed during the test for the right answer

According to the results etymology has a positive impact in

learning new English words Students in group B developed

better skills in learning new lexicon in a foreign language

Therefore participants can hold more amount of information in

English when this is related with their native language

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 29: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 28

References

Balme M amp Lawall G (2003) Athenaze an introduction to

Ancient Greek (2nd ed) New YorkOxford Oxford University press

Bellomo T (1999) Etymology and vocabulary development for

the L2 college student Bigelow M amp Elaine T (2004) The forum The role of literacy

level in second language acquisition doesnrsquot who we study determine what we know TESOL quarterly Vol 38 No4 Winter 2004

Coon Dennis (2001) Introduction to psychology gateways to

mind and behavior Ninth edition Belmont CA Davies P (1981) Roots-family histories of familiar words

(1st ed) USA Kingsport press Gorrell R (2001) Whatrsquos in a word (1st ed) Reno Kaelin

Chappell Harris Robert Evaluating internet research sources VirtualSalt 17 Nov 1997 Retrieved October 2 2004 from

the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsaltcom evalu8ithtm

Holmes C amp Ronald L (1995) A computerized method to

teach Latin and Greek root words effects on verbal SAT scores Journal of educational research 0022-0671 Vol 89 Issue 1 1

Ilson R (1983) Etymological information can it help our

students ELT journal 37 79

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 30: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 29

Κουλάκης Γ (1993) Το Μεγάλο ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νεοελληνικής γλώσσας (Α έκδοση) Θεσσαλονίκη Εκδόσεις Μαλλιαρής-Παιδεία ΑΕ

Laird C Down Giantwife The uses of etymology English

Journal 1106-1112 Maylath B (1997) Why do they get it when I say ldquogingivitisrdquo

but not when I Say ldquogum swellingrdquo New directions of teaching and learning 70 2930

Morwood J amp Warman M (1990) Our Greek and Latin roots

(3rd ed) Musselburgh Cambridge university press Oxford American dictionary and language guide (1999) New York

Oxford University Press Pierson H (1989) Using etymology in the classroom ELT

journal 431 January 1989 5862 Pittman W (2003) Building vocabulary through prefixes

roots and suffixes The internet TESL journal VolIX No 7 July 2003 Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpitesljorgtechniques Pittman-BuildingVocabularyhtml

Robert H (2003) Word roots and prefixes Retrieved October 2 2004 from the World Wide Web httpwwwvirtualsalt comrootshtm Small R (1987) Linguistics in the English class

Educational journal 289 171 CS 210866 16 Solagne M amp Sao C (2001 July) Teaching vocabulary to

advanced students a lexical approach Retrieved September 21 2004 from the World Wide Web http www3telusnetlinguisticissuesteachingvocabulary html

Thelen J (1986) Vocabulary instruction and meaningful

learning Journal of reading 604607 Τζιροπούλου-Ευσταθίου A (1995) How the Greek language

fertilized the European languages (1st ed) Athens Nea thesis

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 31: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 30

Γιουγκιούκλης Καμπάκης Κ (1990) Lexical decomposition as a strategy for guessing unknown words usersrsquo competence and confidence Educational research 328 096 FL

019066 29

Roots and Prefixes

Root or Prefix Meaning Examples a an not without atheist anarchy anonymous apathy

aphasia anemia Ab away from absent abduction aberrant

abstemious Ambul to walk ambulatory amble ambulance

somnambulist Ante before anteroom antebellum antedate

antecedent antediluvian anti ant against opposite antisocial antiseptic antithesis

antibody antichrist antinomies antifreeze antipathy antigen antibiotic

Audi to hear audience auditory audible auditorium audiovisual audition

Be thoroughly bedecked besmirch besprinkled Auto Self automobile automatic autograph

autonomous autoimmune Bene good well benefactor beneficial benevolent

benediction beneficiary benefit cede ceed cess to go to yield succeed proceed precede recede

secession exceed succession Chron Time chronology chronic chronicle

chronometer anachronism cide cis to kill to cut fratricide suicide incision excision

circumcision Circum around circumnavigate circumflex

circumstance circumcision circumference circumorbital

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 32: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 31

circumlocution circumvent circumscribe circulatory

clud clus claus to close include exclude clause claustrophobia enclose exclusive reclusive conclude

con com with together convene compress contemporary converge compact confluence concatenate conjoin combine

contra counter against opposite contradict counteract contravene contrary counterspy contrapuntal

Cred to believe credo credible credence credit credential credulity incredulous

Cycl circle wheel bicycle cyclical cycle encliclical De from down away detach deploy derange deodorize

devoid deflate degenerate deice dei div God god divinity divine deity divination

deify Demo people democracy demagogue epidemic Dia through across between diameter diagonal dialogue dialect

dialectic diagnosis diachronic Dict speak predict verdict malediction

dictionary dictate dictum diction indict

dis dys dif away not negative dismiss differ disallow disperse dissuade disconnect dysfunction disproportion disrespect distemper distaste disarray dyslexia

duc duct to lead pull produce abduct product transducer viaduct aqueduct induct deduct reduce induce

dyn dyna power dynamic dynamometer heterodyne dynamite dynamo dynasty

Ecto outside external ectomorph ectoderm ectoplasm ectopic ectothermal

Endo inside withing endotoxin endoscope endogenous Equi equal equidistant equilateral equilibrium

equinox equitable equation equator e ex out away from emit expulsion exhale exit express

exclusive enervate exceed explosionexter extra outside of external extrinsic exterior

extraordinary extrabiblical extracurricular extrapolate

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 33: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 32

extraneous flu flux Flow effluence influence effluvium

fluctuate confluence reflux influx flect flex to bend flexible reflection deflect

circumflex graph gram to write polygraph grammar biography

graphite telegram autograph lithograph historiography graphic

Hetero other heterodox heterogeneous heterosexual heterodyne

Homo same homogenized homosexual homonym homophone

Hyper over above hyperactive hypertensive hyperbolic hypersensitive hyperventilate hyperkinetic

Hypo below less than hypotension hypodermic hypoglycemia hypoallergenic

in im Not inviolate innocuous intractable innocent impregnable impossible

Infra beneath infrared infrastructure inter intro between international intercept intermission

interoffice internal intermittent introvert introduce

Intra within into intranet intracranial intravenous jac ject to throw reject eject project trajectory

interject dejected inject ejaculate Mal bad badly malformation maladjusted dismal

malady malcontent malfeasance maleficent

Mega great million megaphone megalomaniac megabyte megalopolis

Meso middle mesomorph mesoamerica mesosphere

Meta beyond change metaphor metamorphosis metabolism metahistorical metainformation

Meter measure perimeter micrometer ammeter multimeter altimeter

Micro small microscope microprocessor microfiche micrometer micrograph

Mis bad badly misinform misinterpret mispronounce misnomer mistake

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 34: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 33

misogynist mit miss to send transmit permit missile missionary

remit admit missive mission Morph shape polymorphic morpheme amorphous Multi many multitude multipartite multiply

multipurpose Neo New neologism neonate neoclassic

neophyte Non Not nonferrous nonabrasive nondescript Omni All omnipotent omnivorous omniscient Para beside paraprofessional paramedic

paraphrase parachute Per through intensive permit perspire perforate persuade Peri around periscope perimeter perigee

periodontal Phon sound telephone phonics phonograph

phonetic homophone microphone Phot Light photograph photosynthesis photon Poly many polytheist polygon polygamy

polymorphous Port to carry porter portable report

transportation deport import export Re back again report realign retract revise regain Retro backwards retrorocket retrospect retrogression

retroactive Sanct Holy sanctify sanctuary sanction

sanctimonious sacrosanct scrib script to write inscription prescribe proscribe

manuscript conscript scribble scribesect sec Cut intersect transect dissect secant

section Semi Half semifinal semiconscious

semiannual semimonthly semicircle Spect to look inspect spectator circumspect

retrospect prospect spectacle Sub under below submerge submarine substandard

subnormal subvert super supra above superior suprarenal superscript

supernatural supercede Syn together synthesis synchronous syndicate Tele distance from afar television telephone telegraph

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 35: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 34

telemetry theo the God theology theist polytheist therm thermo Heat thermal thermometer thermocouple

thermodynamic thermoelectric Tract to drag draw attract tractor traction extract

retract protract detract subtract contract intractable

Trans across transoceanic transmit transport transducer

Un Not uncooked unharmed unintended veh vect to carry vector vehicle convection vehementvert vers to turn convert revert advertise versatile

vertigo invert reversion extravert introvert

Vita Life vital vitality vitamins revitalize

Number Prefixes

Prefix Meaning Examples

mono uni One monopoly monotype monologue mononucleosis monorail monotheist unilateral universal unity unanimous uniform

bi di Two divide diverge diglycerides bifurcate biweekly bivalve biannual

Tri three triangle trinity trilateral triumvirate tribune trilogy

quat quad Four quadrangle quadruplets

quint penta Five quintet quintuplets pentagon pentane pentameter

hex ses sex Six hexagon hexameter sestet sextuplets

Sept seven septet septennial

Oct eight octopus octagon octogenarian

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 36: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 35

octave

Non Nine nonagon nonagenarian

Dec Ten decimal decade decalogue decimate

Cent hundred centennial century centipede

mill kilo thousand millennium kilobyte kiloton

Mega million megabyte megaton megaflop

Giga billion gigabyte gigaflop

Tera trillion terabyte teraflop

Milli thousandth millisecond milligram millivolt

Micro millionth microgram microvolt

Nano billionth nanosecond nanobucks

Pico trillionth picofarad picocurie

Femto quadrillionth femtosecond

(Robert Harris 2003)

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 37: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 36

Pretest

Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each

unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions

(1) Constellation

(a) a group of thieves

(b) a group of stars

(c) a situation that still remains the same

(d) when a situation gets cancelled

(2) detour

(a) the top of Eiffel tower

(b) a tourist who asks for directions

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 38: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 37

(c) a road that has a dead end

(d) an alternative route

(3) revive

(a) to drink a glass of wine

(b) to live again

(c) to repeat the same mistake continuously

(d) someone who talks loud

(4) decline

(a) the northern part of hemisphere

(b) to go down

(c) when an object falls down

(d) When somebody visits a clinic

(5) Inflation

(a) increase of money or credit

(b) increase the fire

(c) put out the fire

(d) loss of something important

(6) Insole

(a) inner part of the brain

(b) inside of a shoe

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 39: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 38

(c) blasphemy

(d) the upper part of a shoe

(7) semicircle

(a) a part of the moon

(b) a half part of a circle

(c) a part of a circle

(d) a full moon

(8) impermeable

(a) to pass

(b) to make a favour

(c) not able to talk

(d) not able to passgo through

(9) Semidome

(a) a roof covering the half of a circular room

(b) a roof that covers the whole room

(c) a room usually basement to store wine

(d) an attic

(10) bipods

(a) a fish with two legs

(b) an animal that has two legs

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 40: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 39

(c) an animal with four legs

(d) a human that lives over a century

(11) Interference (a) to become full of fear

(b) to get involved in a situation (c) to give something to a person (d) to become friends with someone

(12) Incline

(a) leaning or bending (b) to go down (c) when an object falls down (d) When somebody visits a clinic (13) Indicate (a) to point out (b) to hide something from a person (c) to show (d) all of the above (e) a amp c

(14) Dilute

(a) to reduce the strength of a fluid

(b) to increase the strength of a fluid

(c) a coward person

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 41: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 40

(d) a and b

(15) discourage

(a) lack of courage

(b) a feeling of confidence

(c) patience

(d) all of the above

(16) disaster

(a) a catastrophic event

(b) a helpful event

(b) to be in a hurry

(d) all of the above

(17) dismember

(a) to put things together

(b) to cut into pieces

(c) to throw away something

(d) a and b

(18) indifference

(a) lack of sympathy

(b) lack of interest

(c) lack of concern

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 42: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 41

(d) all of the above

(19) deflation

(a) to reduce

(b) to increase

(c) to put fire

(d) all of the above

(20) immortal

(a) eternal

(b) someone who died

(c) undying

(d) a and c

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 43: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 42

Explanation of the Pre ndash test words

Constellation

κων με + στέλλα ndash αστήρ ndash αστέρι

detour

τουρνός ταξιδιώτης

revive

re = ξανά + βίος

decline

απο κάτω + κλήνω

inflation εν + φλαίω insole

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 44: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 43

εν + σόλα semicircle ήμισον + κύκλος impermeable α + πέρασμα semi dome ήμισον + δομή bipods δύο + πους πόδι interfere ανα + φερώ incline εν + κλήνω indicate εν + δεικνύω dilute διαλυτικό discourage δις + κουράγιο

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 45: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 44

disaster δις + αστήρ dismember δις + μέλος deflation από κάτω + φλαίω immortal Αμβροσία

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 46: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 45

Post ndash Test Name_________________________________________________

Date__________________________________________________

Please choose one out of the four possible answers for each unknown word You have to answer all twenty questions (1) Pedestrian (a) A person who walks in a town (b) Someone with a disability (c) Someone who uses public transportation (d) A and C (2) Aviation (a) to avoid a situation (b) to operate an aircraft (c) to prevent something happening (d) A bird that originates from Africa

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 47: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 46

(3) Assimilate (a) to incorporate (b) to take in (c) to understand (d) all of the above (4) Assistant (a) Helper (b) Supporter (c) Chief (d) A and B (5) Agriculture (a) Farming (b) Anything related to foreign cultures (c) Flora (d) Fauna (6) Destination (a) Purpose (b) Objective (c) Intention (d) all of the above (7) Dimension (a) Measurement

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 48: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 47

(b) to mention someone (c) An amusement park (d) All of the above (8) Alternative (a) option (b) choice (c) substitute (d) all of the above (9) predict (a) Expect (b) Guess (c) Observe (d) all of the above (10) contradict (κόντρα + δεικνύω) (a) Disagree (b) Correspond (c) Correct (d) a and c (11) Indicate (a) Specify (b) Show

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 49: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 48

(c) Point (d) all of the above (12) Disperse (a) to break up (b) to go away (c) to put things together (d) a and b (13) Bigamist (a) to glue two parts (b) to play a game (c) to have two marriages (d) all of the above (14) Brevity (a) Shortness (b) Briefness (c) Lengthiness (d) a and b (16) Acrostic (a) a poem in which certain letters in each line form a word (b) the meaning on each conversation (c) the end of a line

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 50: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 49

(d) an ankle less than 90 degrees (17) Amorphous (a) Formless (b) Shapeless (c) Defined (d) a and b (18) Aspect (a) Feature (b) Portion (c) Characteristic (d) all of the above (19) Antinomy (a) Against the law (b) Against reputation (c) to give a nick name (d) a and b (20) Impetuous (a) Hasty (b) Spontaneous (c) Rash (d) all of the above

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 51: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 50

Explanation of the Post ndash Test Words Pedestrian πους πόδι = πεζός Aviation αιβετός (Ancient Greek) = αητός Assimilate α + lsquoομοιους Assistant α + ιστήμι Agriculture αγρός + colos LT (κουλτούρα) Destination δι + ιστάνω

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 52: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 51

Dimension δι + μετρώ Alternative άλλος + έτερος predict προ + δεικνύω Indicate εν + δεικνύω Disperse δια + σπέρνω Bigamist δύο + γάμος Brevity βραχύς Acrostic άκρος + στίχος Amorphous α + μορφή

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 53: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 52

Aspect α + σκοπέω Antinomy αντί + νόμος Impetuous εν + πετώ

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 54: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 53

The Greek Alphabet Letter Translit- Pronunciation Pronunciation eration in Ancient Greek in Modern Greek Αα alpha α (short) as in α (short) as the father α (long) sound of father as in father but held longer Bβ beta as in base as in vase Γγ gamma an in gray as in York Δδ delta as in Denmark as in there Εε epsilon as in get as in get Ζζ zeta as in wisdom as in zebra or as in pizza

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 55: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 54

Ηη eta as in get but as in the sound held longer in it Θθ theta as in top as in thanks or as in thanks Ιι iota ι(short) as in the as in the sound sound in it ι(long) in it as in the sound in keen Κκ kappa as in sack as in sack Λλ lambda L L Μμ mi M M Νν ni N N Ξξ xi as in axe as in axe Οο omicron as in donrsquot as in donrsquot Ππϖ pi as in sap as in sap Ρρ rho a trilled r a trilled r Σσ cs sigma as in sing as in sing Ττ taf as in sat as in sat

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 56: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 55

Υυ upsilon u (short) as in as in the tu in Frenchu sound in it long as in tu French but longer Φφ phi aspirated sound as in fame as in pot or as in fame Χχ chi as in kit as travajo in Spanish Ψψ psi as in lips as in lips Ωω omega as in caught as in caught but longer

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes
Page 57: Using Etymology in Greek E - Hellenic Culture Centrehcc.edu.gr/download/The Benefits of Etymology.pdf · meaning angle (Τζιροπούλου - Ευσταθίου, 1995). Therefore,

Chatzisavvas 56

  • Roots and Prefixes
  • Number Prefixes