Morphemes in “differently”
“differently” has 3 morphemes: differ + -ent + -ly.
differ
root
+
ent
suffix
+
ly
suffix
Spelling changes when the parts join: the boxes show the letters as written; the morphemes themselves are differ + -ent + -ly.
Each morpheme explained
| Morpheme | Type | Free / bound | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| differ | free root | free | be different |
| -ent | derivational suffix | bound | doing or causing; a person or thing that does |
| -ly | derivational suffix | bound | in the manner of; every (as in daily) |
How the word is built
differ → different → differently
Each step adds one affix to the word before it; the root “differ” is where the chain starts.
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Segmentation derived from MorphyNet (Batsuren, Bella & Giunchiglia, 2021; CC BY-SA 3.0, built from Wiktionary), with hand-written affix glosses and root meanings from WordNet. Reviewed for classroom use; tell us if you spot an error.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many morphemes are in "differently"?
"differently" has three morphemes: differ + -ent + -ly.
How do you break "differently" into morphemes?
differ + -ent + -ly. The root is "differ"; -ent is a derivational suffix, -ly is a derivational suffix.
What is the root word of "differently"?
The root of "differently" is "differ", built up as differ → different → differently.
Is this morphology tool free?
Yes. The Fixie morphological analyzer is free with no signup and runs in your browser.