TEXT means "to weave." So a textile is a woven or knitted cloth. The material it's made from determines its texture, the smoothness or roughness of its surface. And individual words are "woven" into sentences and paragraphs to form a text.

PLAC means "to please or be agreeable to," or "to soothe or calm." Pleasant, pleasurable, and pleasing all derive from this root, even though their spelling makes it hard to see.

AUT/AUTO means "same" or "self." Something automatic operates by itself, and an automobile moves by itself, without the help of a horse. An autograph is in the handwriting of the person him- or herself, and an autopsy is an inspection of a corpse by an examiner's own eyes.

GRAT meaning "pleasing, welcome, or agreeable," or meaning "grace, agreeableness, or pleasantness." A meal that's served graciously will be received with gratitude by grateful guests; those who show no appreciation could be called ingrates.

CLAM/CLAIM meaning "to shout or cry out." To claim often means "to call for." And an exclamation is a cry of shock, joy, or surprise.

CRAC/CRAT meaning "power." Attached to another root, it indicates which group holds the power. With demos, the word for "people," it forms democracy, a form of governmnet in which the people rule. A theocracy, with theos, the word for "god," is government based on divine guidance. In a meritocracy, people earn power by their own merit.

PUNC meaning "point." A period is a form of punctuation that's literally a point, and a punctured tire has been pricked by a sharp point.

POT meaning "able." Our English word potent means "powerful" or "effective," whether for good or bad. A potent new antibiotic might be able to deal with infections that have developed resistance to old drugs; an industrial gas might be identified as a potent contributor to climate change; and a potent drink might leave you staggering.

Greek and Latin Borrowings