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Year 5

Spelling words with the prefixes de-, re-, sub-, super-, inter-, anti- and auto-

I can spell a range of words with the prefixes de-, re-, sub-, inter-, super-, anti- and auto-.

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New
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Year 5

Spelling words with the prefixes de-, re-, sub-, super-, inter-, anti- and auto-

I can spell a range of words with the prefixes de-, re-, sub-, inter-, super-, anti- and auto-.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. A prefix is a letter or group of letters at the start of a word which changes its meaning.
  2. The prefix de- can mean ‘undo’ and re- can mean ‘again’.
  3. The prefix sub- can mean ‘under’ or ‘nearly’ and super- can mean ‘above’ or ‘larger’.
  4. The prefix inter- can mean ‘between’, anti- mean ‘against’ and auto- mean ‘self’ or ‘own’.
  5. How to spell the curriculum words: opposite, average, interrupt and lightning.

Keywords

  • Prefix - a letter or group of letters added to the start of a root word to change its meaning

  • Root word - the base word from which other words are formed often by adding prefixes or suffixes

Common misconception

Pupils may think every word with a prefix will have a recognisable root word.

Show that some roots we don't recognise may have Latin roots that we don't know. We can call this a 'stem' or a 'root'. Recognising the prefix can still help with spelling and understanding.


To help you plan your year 5 english lesson on: Spelling words with the prefixes de-, re-, sub-, super-, inter-, anti- and auto-, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

You could play a definitions game as a whole class, where children provide a definition and challenge the class to find the right word.
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
What does the prefix un- usually mean? Such as in words like 'unfriendly' or 'unreasonable'.
wrongly
Correct answer: not
against
above
Q2.
Select the prefixes which can mean 'not'.
Correct answer: il-
pre-
Correct answer: in-
auto-
Correct answer: im-
Q3.
Match the word to its meaning.
Correct Answer:deflate,to release the air, the opposite of inflate
tick

to release the air, the opposite of inflate

Correct Answer:subheading,a heading that comes under the main title
tick

a heading that comes under the main title

Correct Answer:international,relating to two or more countries
tick

relating to two or more countries

Q4.
Select the correct spelling of the word.
dilight
dulight
Correct answer: delight
Q5.
What does the prefix sub- usually mean? An example word is 'subheading'.
the opposite or undo
again
Correct answer: under or nearly
above
not
Q6.
What does the prefix re- usually mean? Example words are 'recycle' or 'redo'.
the opposite or undo
Correct answer: again
under
not
above

6 Questions

Q1.
Match these prefixes to their meaning.
Correct Answer:re-,again
tick

again

Correct Answer:sub-,under or nearly
tick

under or nearly

Correct Answer:super-,above
tick

above

Correct Answer:de-,make the opposite or undo
tick

make the opposite or undo

Q2.
Match these prefixes to their meaning.
Correct Answer:inter-,between
tick

between

Correct Answer:auto-,self or own
tick

self or own

Correct Answer:anti-,against
tick

against

Q3.
Select the correct spelling of the word.
interelated
Correct answer: interrelated
interrilated
Q4.
Select the correct spelling of the word.
Correct answer: recycle
ricycle
resicle
Q5.
Correct the spelling of the word in bold in the sentence. I walked through the ortamatick door.
Correct Answer: automatic
Q6.
Correct the spelling of the word in bold in the sentence. Please don't be antysoshul.
Correct Answer: antisocial

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