Word part · Greek combining form
The Greek combining form micro
Means: very small.
At a glance
- Part
- micro
- Meaning
- very small
- Layer
- Greek: Combining forms behind science words, with spellings like ph and ch.
Often comes first and tells the size: microchip, microscope.
Example words
Read each word, then its sum: the parts that build it, and what they mean together.
Colors:prefixroot or basesuffix
- micro (root or base)+scope (root or base)→microscope
a tool for looking at very small things
- micro (root or base)+scope (root or base)+s (suffix)→microscopes
more than one microscope
- micro (root or base)+scope (root or base)+ic (suffix)→microscopic
too small to see without a microscope
micro + scope + ic: drop the e → microscopic
- micro (root or base)+phone (root or base)→microphone
a device that picks up small sounds so they can be made louder
- micro (root or base)+phone (root or base)+s (suffix)→microphones
more than one microphone
- micro (root or base)+wave (root or base)→microwave
a very short wave of energy; an oven that cooks with it
- micro (root or base)+chip (root or base)→microchip
a tiny chip that runs a computer
- micro (root or base)+second (root or base)→microsecond
one millionth of a second
- micro (root or base)+meter (root or base)→micrometer
a tool that measures very small sizes
Original word lists and meanings written by Literacy Trail.
Taught alongside
Parts that share a lesson with micro.
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