Vocabulary Building
🟢 Lite — Quick Review (1h–1d)
Rapid summary for last-minute revision before your NMAT exam.
Vocabulary Building — Key Facts
Word Parts (Morphology)
- Prefix: Added at beginning (un-, re-, pre-, dis-)
- Suffix: Added at end (-tion, -ment, -able, -ful)
- Root: Core meaning (bene = good, mal = bad, bio = life)
Common Prefixes
| Prefix | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| un- | not | unhappy, unusual |
| re- | again, back | rewrite, return |
| pre- | before | preview, predict |
| dis- | not, opposite | disagree, disorder |
| mis- | wrong | mistake, misbehave |
| non- | not | nonstop, nonsense |
| anti- | against | anti-war, antibiotic |
| sub- | under | substandard, submarine |
| trans- | across | transport, transfer |
| micro- | small | microscope, microwave |
Common Suffixes
| Suffix | Part of Speech | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -tion/-sion | noun | education, decision |
| -ment | noun | development, government |
| -able/-ible | adjective (can be) | comfortable, possible |
| -ful | adjective (full of) | beautiful, hopeful |
| -less | adjective (without) | hopeless, careless |
| -ly | adverb | quickly, happily |
| -er/-or | noun (person who) | teacher, doctor |
| -ous | adjective | dangerous, famous |
⚡ NMAT High-Yield: Know common prefixes/suffixes. When you don’t know a word, break it into parts to infer meaning.
🟡 Standard — Regular Study (2d–2mo)
Chapter: Vocabulary Building
1.1 Common Word Roots
| Root | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| bene | good, well | benevolent, benefit, benefactor |
| mal | bad, evil | malicious, malfunction, malice |
| bio | life | biology, biography, antibiotic |
| chron | time | chronological, chronic, synchronize |
| duc/duct | lead | conduct, produce, induce |
| fac/fact | make, do | factory, manufacture, facilitate |
| mit/miss | send | transmit, mission, emit |
| port | carry | transport, portable, export |
| scrib/script | write | describe, prescription, manuscript |
| spec/spic | look, see | inspect, spectacle, specimen |
| tend/tens | stretch, extend | extend, tension, intend |
| vert/vers | turn | reverse, convert, advertise |
| vid/vis | see | video, vision, invisible |
| voc/vok | call | vocal, provoke, advocate |
| cap/cap | take, head | capture, captain, capacity |
1.2 High-Frequency NMAT Words
A
- Abate: To decrease, diminish
- Aberration: Deviation from normal
- Abstain: To refrain from (voting)
- Abundant: Plentiful
- Accelerate: To speed up
- Access: Entry, approach
- Accommodate: To adapt, to make room
- Accumulate: To gather, to collect
- Accurate: Correct, exact
- Acquire: To obtain, to gain
- Adapt: To adjust to new conditions
- Adequate: Sufficient, enough
- Adjacent: Next to, neighboring
- Adverse: Unfavorable, harmful
- Advocate: To support, to argue for
- Aesthetic: Related to beauty and art
- Affluent: Wealthy, rich
- Alleviate: To reduce, to relieve (pain)
- Ambitious: Having strong ambition
- Ameliorate: To improve
- Analogous: Similar, comparable
- Anomaly: Something unusual, irregular
- Antagonize: To provoke hostility
- Anxiety: Worry, concern
- Apathy: Lack of interest or emotion
- Appraise: To evaluate
- Appropriate: Suitable, or to set aside
- Approximate: Near the actual
- Arbitrary: Based on random choice, not reason
- Arduous: Difficult, strenuous
- Artefact/Artifact: Human-made object
- Ascend: To rise, to climb
- Aspire: To desire, to aim for
- Assert: To state confidently
- Assess: To evaluate, to judge
- Assist: To help
- Assume: To suppose, to take for granted
- Assure: To promise, to make certain
- Attenuate: To weaken
- Authentic: Genuine, real
- Autonomous: Self-governing, independent
B
- Benevolent: Kind, generous
- Bias: Prejudice, slant
- Brevity: Shortness, conciseness
C
- Capable: Competent, able
- Capricious: Changeable, unpredictable
- Catalyst: Something that causes change
- Caution: Carefulness, warning
- Censure: Strong criticism, to criticize
- Chronic: Ongoing, long-term
- Circumvent: To bypass, to avoid
- Clarify: To make clear
- Coherent: Logical, consistent
- Collapse: To fall apart, to fail
- Commission: To officially assign, or a fee
- Comparable: Similar, can be compared
- Compel: To force, to urge
- Competent: Capable, qualified
- Compile: To gather together
- Complacent: Self-satisfied, smug
- Complement: To complete, or something that completes
- Complex: Complicated, or a whole with parts
- Comply: To follow rules, to obey
- Concede: To admit, to yield
- Conceive: To imagine, to form an idea
- Concentrate: To focus, to gather
- Concise: Brief, to the point
- Condemn: To criticize strongly, to sentence
- Condone: To overlook, to forgive
- Confer: To give, to discuss
- Confine: To limit, to restrict
- Confirm: To verify, to make certain
- Conform: To follow rules, to comply
- Confront: To face, to oppose
- Consequence: Result, outcome
- Conserve: To preserve, to save
- Consistent: Constant, regular, coherent
- Consolidate: To combine, to strengthen
- Constitute: To form, to make up
- Constrain: To restrict, to limit
- Construct: To build
- Consult: To seek advice, to discuss
- Consume: To eat, to use up
- Contemplate: To think about, to ponder
- Contend: To struggle, to argue
- Contentious: Causing disagreement
- Contribute: To give, to add
- Contrive: To devise, to plan
- Control: To regulate, to manage
- Controversial: Causing dispute
- Convene: To gather, to call together
- Converge: To come together
- Converse: To talk, to communicate
- Conversely: In contrast
- Convict: To find guilty, or a guilty person
- Coordinate: To organize, to bring together
- Correlate: To relate, to connect
- Corroborate: To confirm, to support
- Criticize: To find fault, to analyze
- Crucial: Very important, critical
- Curious: Wanting to know, inquisitive
D
- Dearth: Shortage, lack
- Debate: To discuss, to argue
- Decade: 10 years
- Decay: To rot, to decline
- Deceive: To trick, to mislead
- Decisive: Firm, determined
- Decline: To decrease, to refuse
- Decorum: Proper behavior
- Deduction: Conclusion, or subtraction
- Defect: Flaw, or to desert
- Defend: To protect, to support
- Defer: To postpone, to yield
- Define: To explain the meaning of
- Definite: Certain, clear
- Degrade: To lower in quality, to humiliate
- Delegate: To assign authority
- Deliberate: Intentional, or to think carefully
- Delineate: To describe, to outline
- Delude: To deceive, to mislead
- Demand: To require, to ask forcefully
- Demolish: To destroy
- Demonstrate: To show, to prove
- Denounce: To condemn publicly
- Denial: Refusal, rejection
- Depict: To describe, to represent
- Deplore: To regret, to criticize
- Deploy: To position, to use
- Depreciate: To decrease in value
- Derive: To obtain, to come from
- Desolate: Empty, abandoned
- Desperate: In great need, hopeless
- Despise: To hate, to dislike
- Despondent: Dejected, hopeless
- Destined: Fated, intended
- Destroy: To demolish, to ruin
- Detach: To separate, to disconnect
- Detail: Specific information, or to describe fully
- Detain: To hold, to delay
- Detect: To discover, to notice
- Deter: To discourage, to prevent
- Deteriorate: To worsen, to decline
- Determine: To decide, to find out
- Detract: To take away from
- Develop: To grow, to improve
- Deviate: To depart from, to differ
- Devise: To invent, to plan
- Devote: To dedicate, to commit
- Diagnose: To identify a condition
- Dictate: To speak for others to write, or to order
- Differentiate: To distinguish, to treat differently
- Diffuse: Spread out, or to spread
- Digest: To break down food, or to understand
- Dignity: Respect, honor
- Dilemma: Difficult choice
- Diligent: Hardworking, careful
- Diminish: To reduce, to weaken
- Discern: To perceive, to understand
- Discharge: To release, or a release
- Disclose: To reveal, to expose
- Discount: Reduction in price
- Discover: To find, to learn
- Discrepancy: Difference, inconsistency
- Discrete: Separate, individual
- Discriminate: To treat differently, or to note differences
- Disdain: To despise, to reject
- Disguise: To hide, to conceal
- Disinterested: Unbiased, impartial
- Disjointed: Unconnected, disconnected
- Disparage: To criticize, to belittle
- Disparity: Inequality, difference
- Dispel: To eliminate, to drive away
- Dispense: To distribute, to give out
- Disperse: To scatter, to spread out
- Displace: To move from position, to replace
- Disposal: Getting rid of
- Dispose: To get rid of, or to arrange
- Dispute: Argument, to argue
- Disregard: To ignore, to dismiss
- Disrupt: To interrupt, to disorder
- Disseminate: To spread widely
- Dissent: Disagreement, to disagree
- Dissuade: To discourage, to persuade not to
- Distinguish: To differentiate, to recognize
- Distort: To twist, to misrepresent
- Distract: To divert attention
- Distribute: To give out, to spread
- Disturb: To interrupt, to worry
- Divergent: Different, disagreeing
- Diverse: Various, varied
- Divert: To redirect, to distract
- Divulge: To reveal, to make known
- Doctrine: Teaching, belief, principle
- Document: To record, or a written record
- Domestic: Of the home, or of a country
- Dominant: Most important, controlling
- Donate: To give (usually to charity)
- Dormant: Inactive, sleeping
- Draft: A preliminary version, to compose
- Drastic: Extreme, severe
- Dubious: Doubtful, uncertain
- Dull: Boring, not sharp
- Durable: Long-lasting
1.3 NMAT High-Yield Points
⚡ Commonly Asked:
- Bene/Mal: Good/bad (benevolent, malicious)
- Bio: Life (biology, biography)
- Chron: Time (chronological)
- Mit/Miss: Send (transmit, mission)
- Scrib/Script: Write (describe, manuscript)
- Vert/Vers: Turn (reverse, convert)
- Un-/Dis-/Non-: Not (unhappy, disagree, nonstop)
- Pre-/Re-: Before/Again (preview, rewrite)
- -tion/-ment: Noun suffixes (education, development)
- -able/-ible: Adjective (can be done) (comfortable, possible)