Which skill involves determining the meaning of unknown words using prefixes, suffixes, and root words?

• A. Semantic mapping.
• B. Word analysis/Language knowledge (morphology) and vocabulary development.
• C. Reading fluency.
• D. Syntactic parsing.

Answer: (B)

Understanding how prefixes, suffixes, and root words determine meaning is about word analysis, also called morphology, and vocabulary development. This skill teaches you to dissect a word into its parts to infer meaning. For example, seeing a word with a prefix like un- suggests negation (unhappy means not happy), or a suffix like -ness turning an adjective into a noun (kindness). Recognizing roots helps you connect related words, such as carry in transfer, occurred, and portable. By analyzing these parts, you can figure out meanings of unfamiliar words and expand your vocabulary, which in turn supports comprehension.

Semantic mapping, on the other hand, deals with relationships between words and their meanings, not with breaking words into smaller parts. Reading fluency focuses on speed, accuracy, and expression when reading. Syntactic parsing is about sentence structure and how words function together, rather than inferring meaning from word parts.