Question

Based on your knowledge of the meanings of the prefix dis-, what would you say is the meaning of the word disorder as it is used in the following sentence? The article in the medical journal described a disorder of the nervous system.
Question 5 options:

the interruption of a procedure

an organ of the body

an illness with no apparent cause

an abnormal condition

Answer 1

 In the given context, the meaning of the word 'disorder' is : an abnormal condition. The main feature of the prefix dis- is that in makes word to function in an opposite meaning. Since the sentence is about the nervous system, the only logically and contextually correct option is the last one, as it represents negative meaning opposing to the needed condition. It is not a procedure, not an organ and there is no context clues that point out on it as illness. Also, disorder of nervous system is a stable biological term.