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Words with the root mort

mort means “death”, from Latinmors/mortis.

14 examples of the root “mort”

  1. mortal-alsubject to death
  2. immortalim- + -alnot subject to death
  3. mortality-al + -itystate of being subject to death
  4. mortuary-uaryplace for the dead
  5. mortgage-gage (pledge)pledge held until death
  6. mortify-ifyto deaden or humiliate deeply
  7. immortalityim- + -al + -itystate of living forever
  8. mortification-ify + -ationact of deadening or humiliating
  9. moribund-ibundnear death, dying
  10. mortician-icianprofessional who prepares the dead
  11. postmortempost- (after)occurring after death
  12. amortizea- + -izegradually pay off a debt to death
  13. mortiferous-ferous (bearing)bringing or causing death
  14. immortalizeim- + -al + -izeto make live forever
  15. mortuary-uaryrelating to burial of the dead

How mort works

The root 'mort' typically forms nouns and adjectives related to death, dying, or the dead, and can shift to 'mori-' before vowel suffixes (as in 'moribund'). The prefix 'im-' (a variant of 'in-') negates the root, as in 'immortal,' following the assimilation rule where 'in-' becomes 'im-' before 'm.'

Watch out: The word 'mortar' (a bowl for grinding, or a building material) has no connection to death, deriving instead from Latin 'mortarium,' a grinding vessel.

To see roots combine with other parts, try the word dissector and root builder, or test yourself in the vocabulary quiz.

Other Greek and Latin roots

Questions people ask

What does the root “mort” mean?

mort means “death”. It comes from Latin (mors/mortis). The root 'mort' typically forms nouns and adjectives related to death, dying, or the dead, and can shift to 'mori-' before vowel suffixes (as in 'moribund'). The prefix 'im-' (a variant of 'in-') negates the root, as in 'immortal,' following the assimilation rule where 'in-' becomes 'im-' before 'm.'

What are some examples of words with the root “mort”?

mortal, immortal, mortality, mortuary, mortgage, mortify, immortality, mortification. The full list of 14 examples, with what each one literally means, is above.

Which words look like they have the root “mort” but don’t?

The word 'mortar' (a bowl for grinding, or a building material) has no connection to death, deriving instead from Latin 'mortarium,' a grinding vessel.

What is a root word?

A root is the core of a word that carries its main meaning. Many English roots come from Latin or Greek and cannot stand alone, like port (“carry”) in transport and portable.