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January 16, 2015 by Mike Bergin

Roots2Words Affix of the Week: -MONY

Looking to add a lot more words your personal lexicon or just want to better understand the English language? Learning the common roots, prefixes, and suffixes that so many of our words are based on gives you the tools to recognize familiar words or decode unfamiliar words. That’s the Roots2Words way!
 

Your Roots2Words Affix of the Week is -MONY:

roots2wordssquare200-MONY is a suffix meaning status or behavior.
(Suffixes appear at the end of words)
 
**EXAMPLES**

acrimony (noun) – sharpness, harshness, or bitterness of nature, manner, or speech
BREAKDOWN: ACR- (bitter) + -MONY (status or behavior)
— acrimonious means bitter and caustic in nature, manner, or speech

alimony (noun) – a court-enforced allowance made to a former spouse by a divorced or legally separated person
BREAKDOWN: AL- (to nourish) + -MONY (status or behavior)
— palimony is a form of alimony paid to a former partner in a long-term nonmarital relationship

matrimony (noun) – marriage; the state of being married
BREAKDOWN: MATR- (mother) + -MONY (status or behavior)

parsimony (noun) – frugality; economy; reluctance to spend money unnecessarily
BREAKDOWN: PARS- (to spare or save) + -MONY (status or behavior)

patrimony (noun) – a right or estate inherited from one’s father or ancestor; heritage
BREAKDOWN: PATR- (father) + -MONY (status or behavior)

sanctimony (noun) – false or affected piety or righteousness; a “holier-than-thou” attitude
BREAKDOWN: SANCT- (sacred or holy) + -MONY (status or behavior)
— sanctimonious means making a hypocritical show of piety, devotion, or moral superiority

testimony (noun) – evidence or proof; a statement by a witness under oath
BREAKDOWN: TEST- (witness) + -MONY (status or behavior)

*****

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Mike Bergin
Tens of thousands of students a year prep for the SAT & ACT through programs Mike Bergin created or organized. After more than 30 years of intensive experience in the education industry, he's done it all as a teacher, tutor, director, curriculum developer, blogger, podcaster, and best-selling author. Mike founded Chariot Learning in 2009 to deliver on the promise of what truly transformative individualized education can and should be.

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