Suffixes & Word Families
📋 What it is
A suffix is added to the end of a word to change its type or meaning (-ful, -less, -ly).
🗣️ Coach says
A SUFFIX at the end changes a word's job. "-ful" means full of (hopeful), "-less" means without (hopeless), "-ly" makes an adverb (quickly). One root can grow a whole family of words with suffixes.
🧠 Memory hook
Suffix (end) changes the word's job. "-ful" = full of, "-less" = without.
😂 Giggle
Why was the letter S so refreshing?
Because it turns "lush" into "slush" and cools everything down!
😲 Whoa!
From one root like "care" you can build a whole family: careful, careless, caring, uncaring — all with prefixes and suffixes.
✅ Quick check: What does the suffix "-less" mean in "fearless"?
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
Without — without fear.
The suffix "-less" means "without".
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Take the root "help" and add three suffixes (-ful, -less, -er). What does each make?