Punctuation Worksheets | Hyphen Worksheets - Free Printable

Let’s go step by step.

We are given a list of root words (like “test”, “afternoon”, etc.) and a box of prefixes:
ex-, pre-, post-, self-, mid-, re-, all-

Our job is to pick the right prefix from the box and attach it to each root word with a hyphen, making a real or logical compound word.

Let’s match them one by one:

1. test- → What prefix makes sense? “Pre-test” is common — meaning a test before the main test. So: pre-test

2. afternoon- → “Mid-afternoon” is a common phrase — meaning the middle part of the afternoon. So: mid-afternoon

3. knowing- → “Self-knowing” isn’t quite right… but “self-aware” is more common. Wait — maybe “re-knowing”? No. Actually, “self-knowing” can work in some contexts, but let’s think again. Hmm — perhaps this is meant to be “self-knowing” as in knowing oneself? But that’s not standard. Let’s check other options. Maybe “re-knowing” doesn’t make sense. Actually, looking at common usage — “self-knowing” is acceptable in educational/psychological contexts. But wait — another idea: “foreknowing”? Not in our list. Our list has “self-”. Let’s stick with self-knowing for now — though it’s rare. Alternatively, maybe it’s “re-knowing” — like knowing again? That’s also possible. But “self-knowing” is more meaningful. Let’s go with self-knowing.

Wait — actually, let’s double-check. In many worksheets, “self-knowing” is used to mean awareness of oneself. Okay, we’ll use self-knowing.

4. basketball player- → This is tricky. Which prefix fits? “Ex-basketball player” — yes! Someone who used to play basketball. So: ex-basketball player

5. sell- → “Resell” is common — to sell again. So: re-sell

6. office- → “Post-office” is a very common word — where you send mail. So: post-office

7. service- → “All-service”? Not really. “Self-service” — yes! Like a self-service gas station or cafeteria. So: self-service

8. together- → “All-together” — yes! As in “let’s sing all together.” So: all-together

Wait — let’s review #3 again: “knowing-”

Is there a better fit? Let’s look at the prefixes again: ex-, pre-, post-, self-, mid-, re-, all-

“Re-knowing” = knowing again — possible, but less common.

“Self-knowing” = knowing oneself — used in psychology or philosophy.

But in elementary worksheets, they might expect “self-knowing”.

Alternatively — could it be “pre-knowing”? Like knowing beforehand? That’s “foreknowledge”, not “pre-knowing”.

Actually, I think “self-knowing” is the intended answer here.

Also, note: for #5, “sell-” → “re-sell” is correct.

For #7, “service-” → “self-service” is correct.

For #8, “together-” → “all-together” is correct.

Now let’s write them all down clearly:

1. test- → pre-test
2. afternoon- → mid-afternoon
3. knowing- → self-knowing
4. basketball player- → ex-basketball player
5. sell- → re-sell
6. office- → post-office
7. service- → self-service
8. together- → all-together

Wait — hold on! For #3, “knowing-” — is “self-knowing” the best choice? Let me think if any other prefix fits better.

What about “re-knowing”? It’s not a standard word. “Pre-knowing”? Also not standard. “Post-knowing”? No. “Mid-knowing”? No. “All-knowing”? Oh! Wait — “all-knowing” is a VERY common word! Like God is all-knowing. And “all-” is in our prefix box!

So why didn’t I think of that earlier?

“Knowing-” + “all-” = “all-knowing” — which means knowing everything. That’s perfect!

And “all-” is available in the box.

So #3 should be: all-knowing

That makes much more sense than “self-knowing”.

Then what about #7: “service-” — we said “self-service”, which is good.

And #8: “together-” → “all-together” — still good.

But now we have two uses of “all-”? Is that allowed? The worksheet doesn’t say we can only use each prefix once. So it’s okay.

Actually, let’s check: the directions say “using a hyphen and prefix from the word box.” It doesn’t say “use each prefix only once.” So we can reuse prefixes if needed.

But in this case, “all-knowing” is definitely better for #3.

So corrected:

3. knowing- → all-knowing

Then #7: service- → self-service (still good)

#8: together- → all-together (still good)

But now we’re using “all-” twice — for #3 and #8. Is that okay? Yes, unless specified otherwise.

Alternatively, maybe #8 is meant to be something else? “Re-together”? No. “Post-together”? No. “All-together” is the only sensible one.

So we’ll keep it.

Final matching:

1. test- → pre-test
2. afternoon- → mid-afternoon
3. knowing- → all-knowing
4. basketball player- → ex-basketball player
5. sell- → re-sell
6. office- → post-office
7. service- → self-service
8. together- → all-together

Yes, this looks solid.

Let’s verify each:

- pre-test: common term ✔
- mid-afternoon: common term ✔
- all-knowing: common term ✔
- ex-basketball player: makes sense ✔
- re-sell: common verb ✔
- post-office: common noun ✔
- self-service: common term ✔
- all-together: common phrase ✔

Perfect.

Final Answer:
1. pre-test
2. mid-afternoon
3. all-knowing
4. ex-basketball player
5. re-sell
6. post-office
7. self-service
8. all-together