Friday May 6, 2011
Suffixes and how they form abstract nouns
| Suffix | Examples of abstract nouns formed therewith |
| -age | breakage, frontage, marriage, pilgrimage, shortage, weightage |
| -ance/-ence, a suffix used to form substantives from either adjectives or verbs | appearance, distance, furtherance, insurance, remembrance abstinence, competence, dependence, reference, silence Note that competence and competency are synonymous but not dependence and dependency. |
| -ce/-cy, a noun-forming suffix derived from the Latin -tia, as in absentia | absence, benevolence, clemency, congruence/congruency, delicacy, idiocy, inheritance, leniency, obstinacy Note: The -sy in apostasy is not a variant of -cy. The word is derived from Greek apo “from” + stasis “a standing”. |
| -dom | boredom, fiefdom, freedom, martyrdom Note: The suffix -dom also denotes domain (Christendom, kingdom), rank or station (stardom), and a collection of persons (moviedom, officialdom). |
| -ence | [See -ance/-ence.] |
| -ery/-ry, the latter being the shortened form of the former | ancestry, bravery, devilry, imagery, mimicry, pastry, revelry, slavery, snobbery, trickery Note: The suffix -ery/-ry additionally denotes a place or establishment (bakery, distillery, nursery, refinery, registry), an occupation or vocation or calling (carpentry, chemistry, dentistry, sorcery, wizardry), and a collection of goods or people/things (confectionery, jewellery [US jewelry]), machinery, pottery, stationery, weaponry). |
| -ess/-esse | finesse, largess/largesse, prowess. Variants include -es (riches), -s (fundamentals, statistics), -ice (advice, cowardice, justice), and -ise (expertise, merchandise). |
| -f/-f-, a suffix added to a verb ending in -ve to form a substantive | believe/belief, grieve/grief, prove/proof, relieve/relief, strive/strife. Note: The noun mischief is formed from the prefix mis- “wrongly, badly, unsuitably” + achieve. |
| -head/-hood | godhead, adulthood, brotherhood, childhood, falsehood, likelihood, nationhood, priesthood, womanhood [If you are thinking of an abstract noun associated with neighbour, neighbourhood (“the area surrounding a place, person, or object”) is not it. Try neighbourliness.] |
| -ice/-ise | [See under -ess/-esse.] |
| -ics, a suffix which does not denote state or condition or quality or attribute; but it denotes a body of facts, principles, knowledge, etc. pertaining to a particular subject | Cybernetics, ethics, linguistics, mathematics, numismatics, politics |
| -ion | abolish/abolition, admire/admiration, beautify/beutification, condemn/condemnation, decide/decision, digest/digestion, inflect/inflexion, possess/possession, revolve/revolution, Note the similar word-endings in condemn, contemn, and solemn; but their abstract nouns are formed differently, viz. condemnation, contempt, and solemnity. |
| -ism | heroism, individualism, pauperism Note: Besides denoting state or condition or quality or attribute, the suffix -ism also denotes an action, practice, or process (favouritism, terrorism); a distinctive usage or feature (Americanism, malapropism); or a doctrine, theory, system, or principle (capitalism, consumerism, expressionism, socialism). |
| -ity | absurdity, barbarity, captivity, credibility, credulity, individuality, mortality, paternity, prolixity, scarcity, serenity, speciality (US specialty), technicality, vulgarity |
| -ment | Acknowledgement (US acknowledgment), admonishment (also admonition), concealment, development, enjoyment, entertainment, government, merriment, movement, settlement, shipment Note: Tenement is not an abstract noun. Depending on usage, settlement can be an abstract noun or a common noun. |
| -ness | aloofness, awareness, covetousness, happiness, kindness, preparedness, seriousness, togetherness, uniqueness, weariness, Note: Precise forms preciseness or precision. Concise forms conciseness but not concision. |
| -ry | [See -ery.] |
| -t (controversial?) | [I cannot find -t, as a suffix to form abstract nouns, in any dictionary. Why not? After all, such suffix(?) occurs in words such as ascent, complaint, conceit, constraint, contempt, descent, height, receipt, restraint, weight.] |
| -th | breadth, dearth, death, depth, growth, health, length, stealth, strength, truth, warmth, wealth, width |
| -tude | certitude, exactitude, fortitude, gratitude, magnitude, plenitude, quietude, rectitude, servitude, solitude |
| -ty | certainty, cruelty, entirety, frailty, gaiety, naivety (the original French naïveté is also used), nicety, novelty, piety, propriety, safety, sobriety, sovereignty, |
| -ure | capture, closure, curvature, exposure, failure, pleasure, primogeniture, rapture, seizure, tenure |
| -y | battery, difficulty, discovery, entry (cf. entrance), felony, gluttony, infamy, jealousy, modesty, monotony, pedagogy, philanthropy, synchrony, tyranny, villainy |
Source:
- New York City relies on automation technologies to face challenges of urbanisation
- Survey: Britons love tea more than coffee
- Oil palm firms team up with Sabah to protect Malua Forest Reserve
- Win The Good Food Cook Book!
- Powering the Big Apple
- Fun with words
- Build robust cities
- Rail marvel in New York
- Carnegie Hall gets green facelift
- Fun with synonyms
- Survey: Britons love tea more than coffee
- New York City relies on automation technologies to face challenges of urbanisation
- Oil palm firms team up with Sabah to protect Malua Forest Reserve
- Powering the Big Apple
- Build robust cities
- Fun with words
- Rail marvel in New York
- Fun with synonyms
- Carnegie Hall gets green facelift
- Win The Good Food Cook Book!
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