Build words with prefixes and suffixes

Grade 6 Reading Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Reading the Past (article)

   [1] A historian studies the past by reading manuscripts, letters written by hand long before printing. [2] Some papers survive as transcripts, copies made by writing out the words of the original. [3] An inscription cut into stone may last longer than any paper. [4] When Dr. Rao compared a manuscript with its transcript, she noticed an error in the date.

   [5] She described the mistake in a short note and sent it to the museum. [6] The museum's records are arranged chronologically, so each document sits beside others from the same period. [7] That order makes it easy to see how a town changed over many years. [8] Dr. Rao's retrospective article described a century of change in one harbor town.

   [9] Some readers found the dates in the article hard to follow until she added a timeline. [10] Her work shows that careful writing, not memory, keeps history alive.

2. 1.

   Ari reads sentence 3. Using in- (into) and script (write), what is an inscription?

   • words cut into a surface
   • words copied from another page
   • a note that describes something
   • words spoken aloud to a crowd
3. 2.

   Bo reads sentence 6. Using chron (time), -logical and the sentence, what does chronologically mean?

   • by the museum room that holds them
   • in the order the events happened
   • by the name of each writer
   • by whether the facts are true
4. 3.

   Jun reads sentence 8. Retrospect is a noun, and retrospective is a describing word. What does retrospective tell you about the article?

   • It looks closely at a single moment.
   • It looks back over events that already happened.
   • It looks ahead to events that will happen.
   • It names the person who looks back.

5. When a Volcano Erupts (article)

   [1] Geologists study how the Earth changes, and few events change it faster than an eruption. [2] The root rupt means break, and a volcano erupts when pressure breaks through the crust. [3] The eruption can be abrupt, with almost no warning. [4] Ash may interrupt flights and disrupt farms hundreds of miles away.

   [5] A rupture in the crust may also open new vents. [6] Instruments called seismometers detect small tremors before a large blast. [7] A geothermal plant, by contrast, uses the Earth's own heat to make electricity. [8] The hot water that powers it was heated deep below the surface.

   [9] Geologists compare the two uses of Earth's heat when they plan a town. [10] The same underground heat can produce both danger and energy.

6. 4.

   Kira reads sentence 3. Using ab- (off) and rupt (break), what does abrupt most likely mean?

   • sudden, as if broken off
   • very large and wide in size
   • close to the surface of the crust
   • slow and gradual over many years
7. 5.

   Milo reads sentence 7. Using geo (Earth), therm (heat) and -al, what does geothermal mean?

   • relating to the Earth's rocks
   • measuring the heat of the Earth
   • using heat from the Earth
   • heat that comes from the sun
8. 6.

   Noah compares erupts in sentence 2 and eruption in sentence 1. How does -ion change the word?

   • Eruption is a describing word for the volcano.
   • The two words come from different roots.
   • Erupts means before breaking, and eruption means after.
   • Erupts names an action; eruption names the event.

9. The Science Fair (story)

   [1] At the science fair, each team had to project its results onto a screen. [2] The root ject means throw, and a projector throws light forward. [3] One judge, Ms. Lindqvist, would interject a question whenever a claim seemed unclear. [4] She rejected a project only after explaining why.

   [5] A team that tested paper airplanes studied the trajectory of each throw. [6] Another team constructed a small bridge and tested how much weight it could support. [7] When the bridge failed, the team calmly analyzed the damage. [8] Their instructions for building the next model were clearer.

   [9] The judge praised the team's willingness to inspect their own mistakes. [10] Several students were chosen to present their projects at the regional fair.

10. 7.

    Pia reads sentence 3. Using inter- (between) and ject (throw), what does interject mean?

    • throw a question away
    • throw light forward onto a screen
    • throw a remark in between
    • ask a question much later in the day
11. 8.

    Ren reads sentence 4. Using re- (back) and ject (throw), what does rejected most likely mean?

    • stopped with a question
    • accepted after a long delay
    • turned down, as if thrown back
    • showed on a screen for the crowd
12. 9.

    Tala reads sentence 5. Using tra- (across) and ject (throw), what does trajectory most likely mean?

    • the path of something thrown
    • the weight of something thrown
    • a measure of how fast it landed
    • a plan for the next throw
13. 10.

    Zee compares constructed (sentence 6) and instructions (sentence 8), which share the root struct (build). How do the prefixes differ?

    • Con- means against, so the team built it to fail on purpose.
    • Con- means together, so pieces are joined; in- means into, so instructions build skill.
    • Both prefixes mean not, so the words describe building that failed or was undone.
    • The prefixes do not matter, because the root alone fixes the meaning of each word.