超-, 亚-, 无-, -化, -型, -性…: prefixes and suffixes
【六01】【六02】语素 / morphemes
Tone colorsā tone 1á tone 2ǎ tone 3à tone 4a neutral
The prefixes 超-, 多-, 反-, 无-, 亚-, 准- and the suffixes -化, -式, -型, -性 attach to a word to make a new one: 超 + 重 gives 超重 ("overweight"), 现代 + 化 gives 现代化. They are productive building blocks, so you can understand words you have never met.
Prefixes: 超- "beyond" (超重, 超标 "above the limit"), 多- "multi-" (多项指标 "several indicators"), 反- "counter-" (反作用 "opposite effect"), 无- "without" (无烟 "smoke-free", 无症状), 亚- "sub-, half" (亚健康; 亚 is never used on its own), 准- "future, quasi" (准妈妈 "mother-to-be").
Suffixes: -化 "-ise, become" marks a process (现代化, 年轻化 "getting younger"), -式 a style (快餐式 "fast-food style", 美式), -型 a type or size (小型, 苹果型), -性 an abstract noun (重要性 "importance") or a nature (慢性 "chronic", 急性 "acute").
The result is a noun or a modifier: before a noun it often drops 的 (小型汽车, 无烟餐厅). Compare 无烟 with 没有烟: 无- fuses the negation into the word and gives a fixed term, the one of signs, reports and medicine, whereas 没有 stays a verb in the sentence. Likewise 超重 is the precise term and 太重 a plain judgement.
Examples
你的行李超重了，要多付一点钱。
Nǐ de xíngli chāozhòng le, yào duō fù yìdiǎn qián.Your luggage is overweight, so you have to pay a little extra.
现在连小型医院也越来越现代化了。
Xiànzài lián xiǎoxíng yīyuàn yě yuè lái yuè xiàndàihuà le.These days even small hospitals are getting more and more modern.
这家饭馆全面无烟，想抽烟的客人只能到门外去。
Zhè jiā fànguǎn quánmiàn wúyān, xiǎng chōuyān de kèrén zhǐ néng dào mén wài qù.This restaurant is completely smoke-free, so customers who want to smoke have to go outside.
小林的妻子是个准妈妈，所以他最近不再加班了。
Xiǎo Lín de qīzi shì ge zhǔnmāma, suǒyǐ tā zuìjìn bú zài jiābān le.Xiao Lin's wife is expecting, so he has stopped working overtime lately.
长期熬夜、不吃早饭，会让人进入亚健康状态。
Chángqī áoyè, bù chī zǎofàn, huì ràng rén jìnrù yàjiànkāng zhuàngtài.Staying up late and skipping breakfast for a long time puts you in a "sub-health" state.
医生再三强调了定期体检的重要性。
Yīshēng zàisān qiángdiào le dìngqī tǐjiǎn de zhòngyàoxìng.The doctor stressed the importance of regular check-ups again and again.
Common mistakes
✗ 这是一个重要性的问题。 → ✓ 这是一个重要的问题 / 这个问题的重要性 (-性 makes the noun "importance"; the adjective is 重要).
✗ 我们要化现代。 → ✓ 我们要现代化 (the suffix comes after its base).
✗ 请保持没烟的环境。 → ✓ 请保持无烟的环境 (无- fuses with its base to make a word; 没 is not a prefix).