Spelling words with prefixes

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use prefix spelling rules to improve your spelling

A prefix is the group of letters at the beginning of a word which change a words meaning, for example, 'mis' or 'anti'.

The first basic rule with prefixes is that they are simply added to the beginning of a word, and neither the prefix nor the word changes when this happens:

prefix + base word = new word

For example:

mis spelt = misspelt (not mispelt)

ir regular = irregular (not iregular)

The second basic rule with prefixes is that when using prefixes which mean 'not', such as 'ir', 'im', 'il' or 'in', you would usually use the prefix that ends with the same letter that the base word begins with.

For example:

ir regular = irregular (not inregular or ilregular)

il legal = illegal

im mortal = immortal

Exception - use the prefix 'im' in front of words beginning with p.

For example:

im + proper = improper