A privative, named from Latin, "to deprive", is a particle that negates or inverts the value of the stem of the word. In Indo-European languages many privatives are prefixes; but they can also be suffixes, or more independent elements. Privative prefixes In English there are three primary privative prefixes, all cognate from PIE: from West Germanic; for example unprecedented, unbelievable from Latin; for example incapable, inarticulate. , called alpha privative, from Ancient Greek, ; for examp… (More on Privative)