Suffixes and Compound Words

What is a Suffix?

A suffix is a letter or a group of letters that we add to the end of a root word. Adding a suffix changes the meaning of the word or tells us when something happened.

Common Suffixes for Grade 1

• -s or -es (More than one): Turns a singular noun into a plural.

• Dog becomes Dogs.

• Bus becomes Buses.

• -ed (In the past): Shows that an action already happened.

• Walk becomes Walked.

• -ing (Happening now): Shows that an action is going on right now.

• Play becomes Playing.

• -ful (Full of): Describes something that has a lot of a certain quality.

• Help becomes Helpful.

What is a Compound Word? A compound word is made when two small, separate words join together to make one brand-new word! Think of it like an addition problem in math:

Word A + Word B = New Word

Examples of Compound Words

• Rain + Bow = Rainbow
• Sun + Flower = Sunflower
• Snow + Man = Snowman
• Foot + Ball = Football

Why Do We Learn This?

• Vocabulary: It helps you understand new words. If you know what "care" and "ful" mean, you know that "careful" means being full of care.
• Spelling: Breaking a big word like "Butter-fly" into two parts makes it much easier to spell!

Lesson Summary

• Suffixes are added to the end of words (-ed, -ing, -s).
• Compound Words are two words stuck together (Starfish).
• Breaking big words into smaller pieces makes reading easier.