Word Families
Word Families problems ask you to identify which word belongs to the same family as a given root word. Words in the same family share a common root or base word (e.g., ACT → ACTION, ACTOR, ACTIVE, REACT).
What You'll Learn
Introduction to Word Families
Word Families problems ask you to identify which word belongs to the same family as a given root word. Words in the same family share a common root or base word (e.g., ACT → ACTION, ACTOR, ACTIVE, REACT).
Prerequisites
How to Solve Word Families Problems
Step 1: Identify the given root word
Step 2: Look for the root within each candidate word
Step 3: Check if the candidate word shares the same core meaning
Step 4: Verify that the root is recognizable in the candidate
Step 5: Words from same family often share common prefixes/suffixes
Step 6: Select the word that clearly contains the root
Example Problem
Example: Which word belongs to the same family as 'ACT'? Options: ACTION, ACTOR, ACTIVE, REACT Solution: Step 1: Root word: ACT Step 2: ACTION contains ACT (ACT+ION) ✓ Step 3: ACTOR contains ACT (ACT+OR) ✓ Step 4: ACTIVE contains ACT (ACT+IVE) ✓ Step 5: REACT contains ACT (RE+ACT) ✓ Step 6: All contain the root ACT Answer: All four belong to the ACT family
Pro Tips & Tricks
- Common root families: ACT (ACTION, ACTOR, ACTIVE, REACT, TRANSACT, EXACT)
- FORM (FORMATION, REFORM, FORMAL, INFORM, TRANSFORM)
- PORT (IMPORT, EXPORT, REPORT, SUPPORT, TRANSPORT)
- SCRIPT (SCRIPTURE, MANUSCRIPT, TRANSCRIPT, DESCRIPTION)
- TRACT (TRACTOR, ATTRACT, CONTRACT, EXTRACT, RETRACT)
- The root usually appears as a continuous sequence of letters
Shortcut Methods to Solve Faster
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Practice Worksheets
Practice makes perfect! Work through these worksheets to master Word Families. Each worksheet contains 20 questions with detailed explanations. Start from Worksheet 1 and progress through increasing difficulty levels.
Exam Importance
Word Families is an important topic for various competitive exams. Here's how frequently it appears:
Ready to Master Word Families?
Start with Worksheet 1 and work your way up to expert level! Each worksheet includes: