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ENGLISH
Quarter 1- Module 2: Lesson 2
Inferring Meaning
of Unfamiliar Affixed Words

Department of Education - MIMAROPA Region

 Development Team of the Module
Author: Josephine Lerio Malaluan
Editor: Adelardo I. Malaluan,PhD, Hazel Portia C. Austria
Reviewers: Jinkeelyn De Jose, Andrian Anthony D. Osano
Illustrators: Alexander P. Abeleda, Edhen P. Martin, Louie J. Cortez, Jefferson Repizo
Layout Artist: Mark Roger A. Dacayanan
Management Team:
BENJAMIN D. PARAGAS, CESO V ATTY. SUZETTE T. GANNABAN -MEDINA
Director IV Chief Administrative Officer
Regional Director OIC, Office of the Assistant Regional Director

MARIFLOR B. MUSA ROGER F. CAPA, CESO VI ARNALDO G. VENTURA, PhD RAQUEL P. GIRAO, PhD
Chief CLMD SDS ASDS CID Chief

FREDDIE REY RAMIREZ EDNA C. OABEL ADELARDO I. MALALUAN, PhD ELIZABETH T. DELAS ALAS, PhD
LRMDS SUPERVISOR EPS - English Division EPS LRMDS Supervisor

What I Need To Know

After going through this module, you are expected to:

 Get the meaning of some unfamiliar affixed words through the synonym

and antonym and other parts used in the sentences.

 Improve your vocabulary and use them in your daily life.

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 What I Know

In your previous lesson, you have learned how to infer the

meaning of unfamiliar compound words based on the given context clues

using its synonyms and antonyms.

Read the sentences below and write the synonym or antonym of the

underlined compound words which can be found in the sentence.

1. My Uncle wears this outfit or uniform when he is on duty.

2. Famers follow a timetable, that is, a schedule for planting and

harvesting.

3. The campground or campsite of the Boy Scouts is that hill over there.

4. Instead of tailgating us, why don’t you leave?

5. Jakoy prefers (to) walking in the starlight (rather than) to strolling in

the clear sunlight.

Lesson INFERRING MEANING OF AFFIXED WORDS

2 BASED ON CONTEXT CLUES

Have you come across some unfamiliar words in your readings?

What did you do to understand the unfamiliar words? Did you use

the dictionary?

There is a way of knowing the meaning of the unfamiliar words

without using the dictionary. One way is to look at the context in which the

words are used

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 What’s In

Read the script from a Reader’s Theater fable and answer the
questions below.
The Ant and the Grasshopper

Narrator 1: On a glorious summer day, a grasshopper settles down and sings

out a sweet song. He looks on an ant working hard carrying a
kernel of corn to his house.

Grasshopper: Look at that foolish ant. All day long, he works and never enjoy
the sunshine.

Narrator 2: The carefree grasshopper laughs at the ant and then moves on to
sing more. He stays in the warm sun all summer long without a
care in the world.

Narrator 1: The grasshopper goes on to sing his song and rejoice in the sun’s
warmth. The ant on the other hand, continued to store away food
in his house.

Narrator 2: Rainy season sets in. Cold winds blow hard and rain pours. The
grasshopper comes along to find food, Unluckily, of course, he
finds nothing.

Narrator 1: The grasshopper, very much starving, does not take long to knock
upon the ant’s door and beg.

Ant: My dear friend, all summer long, I worked hard gathering food and
storing it in my house while you played in the sunshine. I’m sorry but I
will not give away my food to someone who is very lazy.

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Grasshopper: I was busy singing my song. I was making beautiful music.
What should I do now?

Narrator 2: The ant thinks and speaks out,

Ant: Sing and dance away your hunger and worries.

Narrator 1: And the moral of the fable is…..

Ant: Work today for the needs that you will have tomorrow.

All: The end.

Comprehension Questions:

1. Who settles down and sings out a sweet song on a glorious summer
day?
2. What did the ant do for the entire summer?
3. Did the grasshopper have food to eat during rainy days?
4. Where did the grasshopper go to beg for food?
5. Why did the ant refuse to give food to the grasshopper?
6. If you were the ant, would help the grasshopper? Why?
7. What lesson does the story tell?

What’s New

Learning the meaning of a word through its use in a sentence or

paragraph is the most practical way to build vocabulary, since a dictionary is

not always available when a reader encounters an unknown word.

Study the sentence taken from the selection “The Ant and the Grasshopper”

The grasshopper comes along to find food. Unluckily, he finds

nothing.

What word in the text gives you a clue to infer the meaning of affixed word

unluckily? If you look for something and you find nothing, are you lucky?

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 A word may have a prefix or a suffix or both in the word unluckily, you

find the prefix un,- the root word lucky, and the suffix –ly (un+lucky+ly). The

prefix un-means not and the suffix -ly makes the word an adverb. With this

information what does the word unluckily mean?

The meaning of unfamiliar words like affixed words or words with

prefixes or suffixes may be inferred based on the context clues by looking at

their synonym or antonym used in the sentence. It will give you a clue to get

the meaning of the affixed words.

Try again to study the sentence below.

If there is misunderstanding and discord between you and Josh, I can’t

blame him for it at all.

What affixed words in the sentence can you see? Can you infer the meaning

of the word misunderstanding by looking its synonym in the sentence?

Misunderstanding and discord are synonymous. They have the same meaning.

When there is misunderstanding there is disagreement or discord.

Below are some of the prefixes commonly used and their meaning.
Prefix Meaning Example/Meaning

Un Not Undecided (not decided)

In Not Inattentive (not attentive)

Im Not Impolite (not polite)

Dis Not Dishonest (not honest)

Ir Not Irresponsible (not

responsible)

Study the sentence in the box below.

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Adriel Ace spoke sensibly in his soft voice not getting into

disagreement.

What affixed words in the sentence can you see?

Can you infer the meaning of the word sensibly by looking for its antonym in

the sentence?

Sensibly and disagreement are opposite in meaning.

Here are some examples of suffixes:

Suffix Meaning Example/Meaning

-ful Full of Beautiful (full of beauty)
-ness A state or quality Kindness (the state of being
kind)
-less Without Boneless (without bone)
-ion The action or Celebration (to celebrate)
process of
-ment The action or Movement (to move)
result of
-sion State or being Confusion (being confused)
-ship Position held Ownership (to own
something)

Activity 1

Directions: Complete the sentences by supplying the correct word in the

blank. Choose your answers in the box.

1. Our congressman is never______________ from sessions in congress.

2. The doctor said it will be a __________tooth extraction for me.

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 3. This old image was carved during the ___________by my great

grandfather.

4. After serving for many years, the __________is now back to his former

job.

5. Install an________ device on your phone so it can be traced when

lost.

antitheft painless ex-president

pre-war absent

What Is It

The words you have encountered in the previous activity include words

that have been formed by affixes. New words formed by affixes also acquire a

new meaning. But the affixes attached to them carry their own special

meaning which can help you figure out the meaning of the new word.

If you still can’t figure out the meaning of the new words through the

word structure that contain affixes, there are context clues that can always

help you. Context clues are the surrounding words used in the same sentence

or nearby sentences that give you an idea what the unfamiliar word means.

In the previous activities, context clues helped you identify your answer.

These clues may give a synonym, an antonym, an illustration, or simply some

examples of an event.

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 What’s More
Activity 2

Directions: Complete the sentences by writing the correct affix in the

blank space.

1. I just can’t believe it! The story is ______believable.

2. No, that answer is _____correct. It is wrong.

3. Let’s look at this information again. We should _____view it before

the test.

4. I saw Rommel just a moment ago, but now I can’t find him! It seems

that he ____appear.

5. Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you correctly. I _______understood you.

Activity 3

Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer to complete the

sentences.

1. The lady announced that Ryan won the grand prize. He became

_______________ for a while and wouldn’t say a word.

a. noisy b. speechless c. disturbed

2. Don’t throw plastic bottles. Some people try to________ them

and earn a lot from them.

a. reduce b. recycle c. return

3. In her ______________ she wanted to throw everything and forget

what she was doing.

a. disappointment b. analyzing c. discharge

4. Angelica slowly ___________each present before giving to the birthday

celebrator.

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 a. untied b. recycle c. unwrapped

5. Uncle Ben was not able to fit the entire luggage into our car, so he

had to _____________ it.

untie b. repack c. remove

What I Have Learned

Affixes are placed at the beginning or at the end of

a word to form a new word. You can infer the meaning of

the affixed words by means of looking and analyzing

based on the context clues such as its synonym and

antonym or other part given in the sentence. It will give

you a clue to get the meaning of the affixed words.

What I Can Do

Directons: Choose the letter of the correct answer to make the sentences

correct.

1. Shianne forgot her lunchbox and had to ______home to get it.

a. replace b. return c. resend

2. Mario’s new cellphone is ___________in two months.

a. breakable b. doable c. payable

3. Babies need ______________ to grow up smart, healthy, and strong.

a. development b. nourishment c. installment

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 4. Jacoi is a ___________ child. He is always kind and helpful.

a. lovable b. predictable c. moveable

5. Josharu almost fell down because his shoelaces were__________.

a. unwrapped b. untied c. unpacked

Assessment

Directions: Give the meaning of the underlined words

using context clues.

1. I can’t believe that you’re still watching cartoons. You’re so childish!

a. good-looking b. clueless c. immature

2. Window cleaners on high-rise buildings can’t be careless.

a. daring b. negligent c. sleepy

3. It is irresponsible for us to share unverified information.

a. unconfirmed b. unknown c. untrue

4. To say that Jeff Bezos, owner of Amazon who has accumulated over 150

billion dollars’ worth of fortune, has a lot of money is an understatement.

a. information that intentionally hides the truth

b. statement that makes something less than what it is

c. words that are designed to insult and belittle somebody

5. U.S. President Donald Trump has made a lot of unpopular decisions in

recent months.

a. not liked b. unknown c. confusing

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 Answer Key
What’s More
Activity 2
What I Know
1. uniform
un
2. schedule
1. in
3. campsite
2. re
4. leave
3. dis
5. sunlight
4. mis
What’s In
Activity 3
Comprehension Questions
1.b
1. grasshopper
2. b.
2. gathered food
3. a
3. nothing
4. c
4. ant’s house
5. c
5. because the grasshopper was lazy
6. No because he was rude and lazy
What I Can Do
7. Answer may vary
1. . b
What’s New 2. c.
Activity 1
3. b
1. absent
2. painless 4. a
3. pre-war 5. b
4. ex-president
Assessment
5. antitheft
1.c
2.b
3.a
4.b
5. a

References

Castillo, Kristine Erika C, 2016, Joy in Learning English 5

pp. 205-206;

Prepared by :

JEANALD V. HERRERA

Bagong Buhay Elementary School – Victoria

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