"The hair of the dog"
definition: A small measure of drink, intended to cure a hangover.
origin: The fuller version of this phrase, i.e. 'the hair of the dog that bit me', gives a clue to the source of the name of this supposed hangover cure. That derivation is from the mediaeval belief that, when someone was bitten by a rabid dog, a cure could be made by applying the same dog's hair to the infected wound.
| Prefix | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| A-/an- | lacking in, lack of | asexual, anemic |
| A- | verb > predicative adjective with progressive aspect | afloat, atremble |
| Ante- | before | antebellum, antediluvian |
| Anti- | against | anti-war, antivirus, anti-human |
| Arch- | supreme, highest, worst | arch-rival, archangel |
| Be- | equipped with, covered with, beset with (pejorative or facetious) | bedeviled, becalm, bedazzle, bewitch |
| Co- | joint, with, accompanying | co-worker, coordinator, cooperation |
| Counter- | against, in opposition to | counteract, counterpart |
| De- | reverse action, get rid of | de-emphasise |
| Dis- | not, opposite of | disloyal, disagree |
| Dis- | reverse action, get rid of | disconnect, disinformation |
| En-/em- | to make into, to put into, to get into | enmesh, empower |
| Ex- | former | ex-husband, ex-boss, ex-colleague |
| Fore- | before | forearm, forerunner |
| In-/il-/im-/ir- | not, opposite of | inexact, irregular |
| Inter- | between, among | interstate, interact |
| Mal- | bad(ly) | malnourish |
| Mid- | middle | midlife |
| Mini- | small | minimarket, mini-room |
| Mis- | wrong, astray | misinformation, misguide |
| Out- | better, faster, longer, beyond | outreach, outcome |
| Over- | too much | overreact, overact |
| Pan- | all, worldwide | pan-African |
| Post- | after | post-election, post-graduation |
| Pre- | before | pre-election, pre-enter |
| Pro- | for, on the side of | pro-life |
| Re- | again, back | rerun |
| Self- | self | self-sufficient |
| Step- | family relation by remarriage | stepbrother |
| Trans- | across, from one place to another | transatlantic |
| Twi- | two | twibill, twilight |
| Ultra- | beyond, extremely | ultraviolet, ultramagnetic |
| Un- | not, opposite of | unnecessary, unequal |
| Un- | reverse action, deprive of, release from | undo, untie |
| Under- | below, beneath, lower in grade/dignity, lesser, insufficient | underachieve, underground, underpass |
| Up- | upgrade | |
| Vice- | deputy | vice-president, vice-principal |
| With- | against | withstand |
| Afro- | relating to Africa | Afro-American |
| Ambi- | both | ambitendency |
| Amphi- | two, both, on both sides | amphiaster, amphitheater, amphibian |
| An-, a- | not, without | anemic, asymmetric |
| Ana-/an- | up, against | anacardiaceous, anode |
| Anglo- | relating to England | Anglo-Norman |
| Ante- | before | antenatal |
| Anti- | opposite | anti-clockwise |
| Apo- | away, different from | apomorphine |
| Astro- | star | astrobiology |
| Auto- | self | autobiography, automatic |
| Bi- | two | bicycle |
| Bio- | biological | biodegrade |
| Circum- | around | circumnavigate |
| Cis- | on this side of | cislunar |
| Con-/com-/col-/cor-/co- | together or with | confederation, commingle, colleague, correlation, cohabit |
| Contra- | opposite | contradict |
| Cryo- | ice | cryogenics |
| Crypto- | hidden, secret | cryptography |
| De- | down | depress |
| Demi- | half | demigod |
| Demo- | people | demography |
| Di- | two | dioxide |
| Dis-, di-, dif- | apart | differ, dissect |
| Down- | to make something lesser, lower or worse | downgrade |
| Du-/duo- | two | duet |
| Eco- | ecological | ecosystem |
| Electro- | electric, electricity | electro-analysis |
| Epi- | upon, at, close upon, in addition | epidermis |
| Euro- | European | Eurocentric |
| Ex-, e-, ef- | out of | export |
| Extra- | outside | extracurricular |
| Fin- | kinship | affinity |
| Franco- | French, France | Francophile |
| Geo- | relating to the earth or its surface | geography |
| Hetero- | different | heterosexual |
| Hemi- | half | hemimorphic |
| Homo- | same | homosexual |
| Hydro- | relating to water, or using water | hydroelectricity |
| Hyper- | above, over | hyperthermia |
| Hypo- | under or below something, low | hypothermia |
| Ideo- | image, idea | ideograph |
| Idio- | individual, personal, unique | idiolect |
| In- | in, into | insert |
| Indo- | relating to the Indian subcontinent | Indo-European |
| Infra- | below, beneath | infrared |
| Inter- | among, between | intercede |
| Intra- | inside, within | intravenous |
| Iso- | equal | isochromatic |
| Macr(o)- | long | macrobiotic |
| Maxi- | very long, very large | maxi-skirt |
| Mega-, megalo- | great, large | megastar, megalopolis |
| Meta- | after, along with, beyond, among, behind | meta-theory |
| Micro- | small | microbacillus |
| Midi- | medium-sized | midi-length |
| Mon(o)- | sole, only | monogamy |
| Multi- | many | multi-storey |
| Neo- | new | neolithic |
| Non- | not | nonexistent |
| Omni- | all | omnipotent, omnipresent |
| Paleo- | old | paleolithic |
| Para- | beside, beyond | parallel |
| Ped-/pod- | foot | pedestrian, podiatrist |
| Per- | through, completely, wrongly, exceedingly | permeate, permute |
| Peri- | around | periphrase |
| Photo- | light, photography, photograph | photoelectric |
| Poly- | many | polygon |
| Post- | after | postpone |
| Pre- | before | predict |
| Preter- | beyond, past, more than | preternatural |
| Pro- | substitute, deputy | proconsul |
| Pro- | before | procambium |
| Pros- | toward | prosthesis |
| Proto- | first, original | protoplasm, prototype |
| Pseudo- | false, imitation | pseudonym |
| Pyro- | fire | pyrokinetic |
| Quasi- | partly, almost, appearing to be but not really | quasi-religious |
| Retro- | backwards | retrograde |
| Semi- | half | semicircle |
| Socio- | society, social, sociological | sociopath |
| Sub-, su-, suc-, suf-, sug-, sum-, sup-, sur-, sus- | below, under | submerge, success, support, surreptitious, suspect, sustain |
| Super- | above, over | supervisor |
| Supra- | above, over | suprarenal |
| Sur- | above, over | surname, surreal, surrender |
| Syn-, sy-, syl-, sym-, sys- | together, with | synthesis, symbol, syllable, system |
| Tele- | at a distance | television |
| Trans- | across | transverse |
| Tri- | three | tricycle |
| Ultra- | beyond | ultraviolet |
| Uni- | one | unicycle |
| Up- | to make something greater, higher, or better | upgrade |
Hi,
Is 'I' an abbreviation or not?
Abdul
Hi,
Yes it is from from Old English 'ic'. It was reduced to 'i' by 1137 in northern England, it began to be capitalized c.1250 to mark it as a distinct word and avoid misreading in handwritten manuscripts.
Thanks
M
Hi
What's the meaning of imply?
Thank you so much
Rachid
Hi Rachid,
Imply
Hello!
Which is more correct?
We studied basic English in school? vs. We studied basic English at School?
Thank you!
Hi,
The only difference is that "in school" is American English and "at school" is British English.
M
Hi Matt,
I'd like to ask you about order of adjectives in sentence. In Czech, when we have two blue shirts and one is dirty, we say "the dirty blue shirt". When we have two dirty shirts and one is blue, we say "the blue dirty shirt". The more outstanding attribute can be emphasised by moving to the beginning. But at school I was learnt that English has this constant order:
number -> judgement -> size, length, height -> age -> colour -> origin -> material -> purpose
So, in our case, English would always say "the dirty blue shirt" (since "dirty" is a judgement?) without a possibility to emphasise one of attributes? Is it really so strict?
Thanks,
Vlada
Hi,
Thanks for your question.
I would say that it is possible to emphasise one of the attributes if you need to differentiate between similar objects. Referring back to your example, if there were two or more dirty shirts and one of them was blue it is possible to refer to this one as "the blue dirty shirt".
M
hi,
I wonder the meaning of the word 'wet-eared'.
Thanks
Hello,
This is from the expression "to be wet behind the ears" which is used to describe a person who is either very young or inexperienced. It originates from the fact that newborn babies are still wet (and obviously inexperienced).
Therefore to describe someone as wet-eared is to say that they have little experience.
M
Hello.
I heard the phrase : "I can't get (a) hold of him" twice. At first, there was an "a", but in the other situation, there wasn't. Are there any differences? Which sentence is correct?
Thanks Bara
Hi Bara,
Basically, both sentences are correct and there are no differences in meaning.
M
Hi Matt,
I'd like to ask you about a "G. I. soldier"
Thanks Mirek
Hi Mirek,
GI or G.I. is a term describing members of the U.S. armed forces or items of their equipment. It may be used as an adjective or as a noun. The term is often thought to be an initialism of "Government Issue" or "General Infantry" but the origin of the term is in fact galvanized iron after the letters "GI" that used to denote equipment such as metal trash cans made from it in U.S. Army inventories and supply records.
During World War I it was somehow assumed that GI stood for "Government Issue" and the term was applied to all military equipment and the soldiers themselves (another incorrect interpretation is "General Infantry"). The term reached even further as its usage spread with the American troops during World War II.
Hope this helps
M
Hi,
What does it mean ¨to feel hard done by.."
.....and how to use it in sentences
Ivana
Hi,
Please click here for my previous definition.
Matt
Hi,
I have a bee in my bonnet about what's the longest word in English?
Thanks for the answer
Best regards Roman
Hi,
It really depends what you mean by the longest word, but the longest recognised, non-technical word (which isn't a place name) is:
Hi, I have a question concerning apostrophe –‘s. I have been taught that apostrophe “-'s” is not applicable to things, ideas etc. just to people, animals, places and time.(English Grammar in Use by Raymond Murphy). But very often I can see in the technical standards using -‘s for objects. For example: hazardous aspect of the developing fire and, thereby, those aspects of the product's fire performance which affect the outcome of the fire scenario. Once the key contributors are established, methods for their quantification or measurement must be identified as illustrated in Flowchart 1. Is the use of apostrophe in this context correct? Best regards,
The fire scenario's primary purpose is to identify the product's potential contribution to each
I wonder because there was a discussion between people having English as mother language and people learned English as second language. Some English speaking people insist that using the apostrophe for things is correct and Murphy has wrong.
I appreciate your answer very much.
Irina Ekblad
Hi Irina,
I have been doing some research on the subject and, to be honest, finding a set of rules which works all the time is impossible.
Firstly I would like to say that all of the highlighted examples above are completely fine; using the apostrophe for things, people or animals is correct.
However sometimes it is not necessary to use an apostrophe: if the noun is a building, an object, or a piece of furniture
Hope this helps.room of the hotel = hotel room
door of the car = car door
leg of the table = table leg
Hi,
Could you tell me which sentence is right?:
"be at the right place at the right time"
or
"be in the right place at the right time"
Hi Matt,
Can you explain to me sentence "Call it a day?"
Thanks for your answer
Have a nice day
Iva
Hi,
If someone "calls it a day" they stop doing something, especially working.
After playing together for 20 years the band have finally decided to call it a day.
It's almost midnight - I think it's time to call it a day.
Hi,
Could you tell me how you would ask students about what is new in their lives or in the world (been to the cinema, visited any exhibitin, etc.)?
Would you say: What´s new? or What´s up?
Thanks,
Dasa
Hi Dasa,
There are a few ways how to ask this:
What's new?
Have you got any news?
Has anything new been going on recently?
What have you been up to recently? (this is what I use the most)
Have you done anything interesting recently?
Hi,
I am very sorry for not posting anything for a long time. I have been very busy and have had some problems.
I will be posting again within the next few days.
I will answer your questions as soon as possible.
Thanks for your patience.
Matt
Hi
I would like to ask you when i can use 'will' like a modal verb..in which specific situations?
Hi,
These are the functions of 'will', as a modal verb:
hi,
can u tell me what is a difference between - 'speak to' someone and 'speak with' someone.
Thank you.
Hi,
In most uses these combinations are interchangeable: "I spoke to [with] her for only a few minutes". In some cases, however, there may be slight differences: 'Speak to' sounds a bit more one-sided, perhaps, than 'speak with', which suggests more give and take (more of a two-way conversation).
Thanks
m
Hello,
I would ask you if you could explain me differences between words: hire, rent and lease.
Thank you
Hi,
Both 'to rent' and 'to hire' can mean to pay money to borrow sth for a short time: to hire a car / room / video. Rent, in this meaning is used most in American English, and hire in British English.
'To hire' can also mean to give sb a job: "She was hired three years ago" or to employ sb for a short time to do a particular job: to hire a lawyer.
'To rent' and 'to lease' also mean to regularly pay money to sb so that you can use sth that they own, such as a house, some land, a machine.
Matt
Hi!
I'd like to ask you when is the interjection 'tut-tut' used?
Thanks
Hi,
This interjection is used when we which to express disapproval, annoyance or impatience.
M
