Prefixes & Suffixes (Intro) — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Our librarian is very ___ when we need to find a good book.
A) helpless
B) helpful
C) helpness
D) helpest
Helpful means full of help. The librarian gives lots of help, so the suffix -ful fits the sentence.
2. My old umbrella is broken, so it is ___ in the rain.
A) useful
B) userly
C) useless
D) userest
Useless means without use. A broken umbrella cannot keep rain off, so it has no use.
3. Out of all three twins, Maya is the ___ runner.
A) faster
B) fastful
C) fastly
D) fastest
Fastest means most fast. With three twins being compared, the suffix -est is used to mark the top one.
4. The teacher asked us to whisper ___ in the library.
A) quietly
B) quietful
C) quietless
D) quieter
Quietly means in a quiet way. The suffix -ly turns the word quiet into a word that tells how to whisper.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. A puppy with no home may feel hopeless at first.
Hopeless means without hope. A puppy with no family might feel there is no hope for a warm bed.
2. My sister is three years older than me.
Older means more old. The suffix -er is used to compare the ages of two people, my sister and me.
3. Please speak loudly so everyone in the back row can hear.
Loudly means in a loud way. The suffix -ly turns loud into a word that tells how to speak.
4. The rainbow after the storm was so colorful it made us smile.
Colorful means full of color. A rainbow has many colors, so the suffix -ful fits best.
5. A person who bakes bread is called a baker.
Baker means one who bakes. The suffix -er is added to bake to name the person who does the job.