Word Formation

FCE (First Certificate) Word Formation: NegativesFor the FCE exam, there's nearly always at least one negative in the word formation paper. There are lots of prefixes and suffixes we can use to make negatives.

1. Negative prefixes can be used with nouns, verbs, adjective and adverbs. For example disapproval, disapprove, disapproving, disapprovingly.

2. Usually im + p (impatient) but not always (unpleasant).3. Often il + l (illegal) but not always (unlikely).4. Often ir + r (irregular) but not always (unresponsive). 5. Usually -ful changes to -less (harmful/less) but not always (endless).6. If you can't remember, choose un - it's the most common negative prefix.

Look at the information in the table for 1 minute and try to remember the words. Then click below to hide the information and try to answer the questions at the bottom.

un- in dis- im-

unexpected unaware unbelievable unknown unable

inaccurate inappropriate inefficient incapable ineffective

disapprove dislike disagree disbelief dishonest

improbable impossible impolite imperfect impatient

il- ir- mis- -less

illegal illiterate illogical illegible

irregular irresponsible irrational irregular

misbehave misunderstand misspell misuse

careless harmless helpless endless

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Write the correct NEGATIVE form of the word in brackets to complete these sentences. Be very careful: some words have different negative forms (e.g. unbelievable/disbelief, unlikely/dislike, unable/disabled).

1. The politician was accused of being (HONEST)

2. His story was so I thought he was crazy. (BELIEVE)

3. She looked at him in when he told her the shocking news. (BELIEVE)

4. Many people are of the dangers of mobile phones. (AWARE)

5. He's invited me to his party. It would be to say no. (POLITE)

6. Too many children nowadays are growing up . (LITERATE)

7. That's not what I said! You've me. (UNDERSTAND)

8. My dog is completely . I promise he won't bite. (HARM)

9. The medicine was - he didn't recover. (EFFECT)

10.His answers were very so he failed the Maths exam. (ACCURATE)

11. It's that people will ever live on the moon. (LIKELY)

12.He waited for the train. (PATIENT)

13. It's to smoke in public places nowadays. (LEGAL)

14. I would never teach children. They always . (BEHAVE)

15.The shirt he's wearing is completely for a job interview. (APPROPRIATE)

16.His speech was . I thought he'd never stop talking. (END)

FCE (First Certificate)Word Formation: Nouns with -ionOne of the most common ways to change a verb to a noun is with -ion (e.g. act to action) and -ation (e.g. observe to observation). Sometimes we also change the verb stem as well when we make the noun like this (e.g. explain to explanation). The table below shows common nouns in which the spelling of the stem also changes.

Look at the information in the table for 1-2 minutes and try to remember the words. Then click below to hide the information and try to answer the questions at the bottom.

Noun Verb Adjectiveapplication apply applicablepermission permit permissablesolution solve unsolveddescription describe descriptiveintention intend unintendedcompetition compete competitivedecision decide decisiveexplanation explain unexplainedproduction produce productiverepetition repeat repetitiveconsumption comsume consumablequalification qualify qualified


Write the correct form of the word in brackets to complete these sentences. Some of the answers are irregular (from the table above), but there are other regular nouns included here. Don't forget to use an -s if necessary.

1. Please send a photograph with your CV and form. (APPLY)

2. You need to make a today. (DECIDE)

3. Her of the grammar was very unclear. (EXPLAIN)

4. We had a long about our problems. (DISCUSS)

5. Students must have their parent's to come on the trip. (PERMIT)

6. He is still in hospital, recovering from his . (OPERATE)

7. I entered a bowling . (COMPETE)

8. My children never show for anything I do! (APPRECIATE)

9. I can't come up with a to this problem. (SOLVE)

10.The of junk food has increased over the last 20 years. (CONSUME)

11.You need a lot of for this job. (QUALIFY)

12.When I lived abroad, I found the from my family very difficult. (SEPARATE)

13.The of the new flats is nearly finished. (CONSTRUCT)

14.We don't want a of the violence at last year's football match. (REPEAT)

15.The police are conducting an into the murder. (INVESTIGATE)

16. I gave the police a of the thief. (DESCRIBE)

17. It wasn't my to offend you. (INTEND)

18.We are making for the wedding. (PREPARE)

19. I've just had a very interesting with your sister. (CONVERSE)

20.You can try our product for free, with no to buy it. (OBLIGE)


Noun (-ence) Adjective Verbevidence evident -existence existing to exist(in)dependence (in)dependent to dependdifference different to differ

intelligence intelligent -(dis)obedience (dis)obedient to (dis)obeyexcellence excellent to excelsilence silent to silenceviolence violent to violateinnocence innocent -occurrence - to occur(im)patience (im)patient -

Noun (-ance) Adjective Verbattendanceattendant (person) - to attend

assistanceassistant (person) - to assist

(dis)appearance apparent to (dis)appeardistance distant -(un)importance (un)important -acceptance accepting acceptreassurance reassured to reassure(ir)relevance (ir)relevant -(in)significance (in)significant to signify

Note: I have only given the more common words here. There are other forms (for example, it is possible to use "to evidence something" as a verb) but these are less common.


Write the correct form of the word in brackets to complete these sentences. The answer could be a noun or an adjective. Don't forget to use an -s or a negative prefix if necessary.

1. Unfortunately, accidents are a common along this road. (OCCUR)

2. It's difficult to believe in the of aliens. (EXIST)

3. The police are looking for of the attack. (EVIDENT)

4. She thinks everyone hates her and needs from her friends all the time. (REASSURE)

5. Scientist believe that the mysterious of millions of bees is due to disease. (APPEAR)

6. What's the best punishment for a teenager? (OBEY)

7. What he said was true, but it was completely . (RELEVANCE)

8. 100% is necessary to pass this course. (ATTEND)

9. I'm the only person who believes in his . Even the police think he's guilty. (INNOCENT)

10.There are three shop over there - you should ask one of them for help. (ASSIST)

11.Some people think that if you enjoy your job, the salary is , but I love money! (IMPORTANCE)

12. I'm excited because I've just got a letter of from Cambridge University! (ACCEPT)

13.Cats are extremely animals. They don't really need people. (DEPEND)

14.You need a lot of if you want to work with children. (PATIENT)


Noun Verb Adjective Adverb(dis)belief (dis)believe (un)believable (un)believablya choice choose chosen -a defense defend defensive defensivelya death die dead/deadly deadlya gift give - -a loss lose lost -a marriage marry (un)married -practice practise practising -pretense pretend - -proof (dis)prove (un)proven -safety save (un)safe safelya sight see unseen -a speech speak (un)spoken -a success succeed (un)successful (un)successfullya thought think thoughtful/less thoughtfully/lessly


Write the correct form of the word in brackets to complete these sentences.

1. The flowers are poisonous - don't eat them! (DIE)

2. You have no - you must do it. (CHOOSE)

3. Their was a very happy one. (MARRY)

4. You need to do some more of this grammar. (PRACTISE)

5. We don't have any that he committed the crime. (PROVE)

6. She's really about her new haircut.(DEFEND)

7. The company made a on their new product. (LOSE)

8. I stared at him in . (BELIEVE)

9. Your parents really care about your . (SAVE)

10.The politician's really made me think about the issues. (SPEAK)

11.We tried to keep up the that everything was OK. (PRETEND)

12. I need to get a for my parents' wedding anniverary. (GIVE)

13. I'm really sorry. You were in your job application. (SUCCEED)

14.He lost his in the accident (SEE)

15.He's really selfish and . (THINK)

Most adjectives which end in -ful make the negative with -less. But, not all. Note also that we can make adverbs from these adjectives with -fully or -lessly. For example, carefully and carelessly. This is a list of key words which might appear in the FCE exam.


The words in this table all use -ful and -less to make the adjectives.

Noun Verb Adjectivecare care careful/carelessharm harm harmful/harmlesshelp help (un)helpful/helplesshope hope hopeful/hopelesspain pain painful/painlesspower power powerful/powerlessuse use useful/uselessthought think thoughtful/thoughtlesstaste taste tasteful/tasteless

The adjectives in this table take -ful or -less, but not both.

Noun Verb Adjectivecount count countless/countableend end endlesshome - homelesspeace - peacefulplay play playfulprice price pricelesssuccess succeed (un)successfultruth - (un)truthful/(un)trueworth worth worthless


Write the correct adjective or adverb for each of these questions. You will need to use -ful/-less or -fully/-lessly. Some answers will also need un-.

1. What a lovely present! That was very of you. (THINK)

2. He drives really - one day he's going to have an accident. (CARE)

3. He's told me times about how good he is at football. (COUNT)

4. Because of his bad interview, he was in his job application. (SUCCEED)

5. "I didn't eat your chocolate," she said , hiding the empty wrapper. (TRUE)

6. It's . England will never win the World Cup football again. (HOPE)

7. My best friend is a rich, lawyer. (POWER)

8. You must remember to recharge your phone. Without its batteries, it's . (USE)

9. Cigarettes are to your health. (HARM)

10.The sales assistant was really and rude. (HELP)

11.A newborn baby is completely . (HELP)

12. "Don't worry - this injection will be completely . (PAIN)

13.Thieves broke into the museum and stole a painting by Van Gogh. (PRICE)

14.She's really rich, but her clothes are always very and elegant. (TASTE)

15. I bought some shares in the company 5 years ago, but unfortunately now they

are . (WORTH)

16.His speech went on . I thought he'd never stop talking. (END)

The word formation part of the FCE use of English exam often tests adjectives such as 'short', 'wide', 'dark' and their nouns and verbs. Here is a list of some of the more common adjectives and their forms.


Adjective Noun Verbdeep depth deepenhigh height heighten- weight weighwide width widenlong length lengthen

short shortage (= not enough)shortness (= not tall) shorten

large enlargement enlargelow - lowertight tightness tightenloose looseness loosenstrong strength strengthenweak weakness weaken

dark darknessdark darken

bright brightness brighten


Write the correct form of the word in brackets to complete these sentences.

1. Normally I prefer tall men, but my husband's isn't a problem. (SHORT)

2. The news report covered the economic crisis in . (DEEP)

3. A healthy diet will your life expectancy. (LONG)

4. If they this road, there would be fewer accidents. (WIDE)

5. I think I'll this photograph. (LARGE)

6. The airport has security at passport control. (TIGHT)

7. I do yoga to my back. (STRONG)

8. There is a water nearly every summer in the south of England. (SHORT)

9. The moment I left work I my tie and started to relax. (LOOSE)

10.When I myself, I found out I'd lost 10kg! (WEIGHT)

11.The of my computer screen gives me a headache. (BRIGHT)

12. I'm afraid of so I couldn't live on the 10th floor. (HIGH)

13.The lights went out and the room was plunged into . (DARK)

14. I'm afraid of the so I sleep with the lights on. (DARKEN)

15.The government are going to the legal drinking age to 18. (LOW)

16.His long illness has him. (WEAK)

Look at the information in the table for 1 minute and try to remember the words. Then click below to hide the information and try to answer the questions at the bottom.

en- -ify -ise -en

enlarge enable entrust enrage ensure endanger

beautify clarify specify identify terrify purify

televise advise organise specialise prioritise criminalise apologise

widen lengthen deepen shorten tighten brighten darken weaken strengthen


Write the correct form of the word in brackets to complete these sentences. Be very careful - these are verbs. So, for example, if the word is DEEP, the verb could be deepen, deepens, deepening or deepened.

1. I find it difficult to my work. (PRIORITY)

2. I'm studying medicine. I want to in genetics. (SPECIAL)

3. This photograph is too small. Can you it for me? (LARGE)

4. I didn't understand what you just said. Could you it? (CLEAR)

5. My electronic dictionary me to listen to the pronunciation of new words. (ABLE)

6. He loves insects. He can over 50 different types of beetle.(IDENTITY)

7. There are a lot of accidents on this road - the council should it. (WIDTH)

8. The time we spent apart only my love for him. (STRONG)

9. You didn't what flavour you wanted, so I got you chocolate. (SPECIFIC)

10.His speech was too long. He should have it. (SHORT)

11.He always thinks he's right. He never for his mistakes. (APOLOGY)

12. I think the government should alcohol. (CRIMINAL)

13.Thank you for the flowers. They really up the room. (BRIGHT)

14.The burglar that no one was in the house before he broke in. (SURE)

15.The film "The Ring" me. I couldn't sleep for days. (TERROR)

16.The government's plans for the hospitals will thousands of lives. (DANGER)

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Word Formation