Morphemes in “prestigious”
“prestigious” has 2 morphemes: prestige + -ious.
prestig
root
+
ious
suffix
Spelling changes when the parts join: the boxes show the letters as written; the morphemes themselves are prestige + -ious.
Each morpheme explained
| Morpheme | Type | Free / bound | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| prestige (written prestig) | free root | free | a high standing achieved through success or influence or wealth etc. |
| -ious | derivational suffix | bound | having, full of, characterised by (form of -ous) |
How the word is built
prestige → prestigious
Each step adds one affix to the word before it; the root “prestige” 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 "prestigious"?
"prestigious" has two morphemes: prestige + -ious.
How do you break "prestigious" into morphemes?
prestige + -ious. The root is "prestige"; -ious is a derivational suffix.
What is the root word of "prestigious"?
The root of "prestigious" is "prestige", built up as prestige → prestigious.
Is this morphology tool free?
Yes. The Fixie morphological analyzer is free with no signup and runs in your browser.