suffix

[ noun suhf-iks; verb suhf-iks, suh-fiks ]
See synonyms for: suffixsuffixes on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. Grammar. an affix that follows the element to which it is added, as -ly in kindly.

  2. something added to the end of something else.

verb (used with object)
  1. Grammar. to add as a suffix.

  2. to affix at the end of something.

  1. to fix or put under.

verb (used without object)Grammar.
  1. to admit a suffix.

  2. to add a suffix.

Origin of suffix

1
First recorded in 1595–1605; from New Latin suffixum, noun use of neuter of Latin suffixus, past participle of suffīgere “to attach on top of,” equivalent to suf- suf- + fīgere “to fasten”; see fix

Other words from suffix

  • suf·fix·al [suhf-ik-suhl, suh-fik-], /ˈsʌf ɪk səl, səˈfɪk-/, adjective
  • suf·fix·a·tion [suhf-ik-sey-shuhn], /ˌsʌf ɪkˈseɪ ʃən/, suf·fix·ion [suh-fik-shuhn], /səˈfɪk ʃən/, noun
  • un·suf·fixed, adjective

Words Nearby suffix

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How to use suffix in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for suffix

suffix

noun(ˈsʌfɪks)
  1. grammar an affix that follows the stem to which it is attached, as for example -s and -ness in dogs and softness: Compare prefix (def. 1)

  2. anything that is added at the end of something else

verb(ˈsʌfɪks, səˈfɪks)
  1. (tr) grammar to add (a morpheme) as a suffix to the end of a word

  2. (tr) to add (something) at the end of a sentence, comment, or piece of writing

Origin of suffix

1
C18: from New Latin suffixum, from Latin suffixus fastened below, from suffīgere, from sub- + fīgere to fasten

Derived forms of suffix

  • suffixal (ˈsʌfɪksəl), adjective
  • suffixion (sʌˈfɪkʃən), noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for suffix

suffix

A letter or a group of letters added to the end of a word to change its meaning. For example, adding the suffix -ter to the adjective hot turns it into the comparative adjective hotter, and adding the suffix -ly to the adjective quick turns it into the adverb quickly. Other examples of words with suffixes are: “willing,” “management,” “serviceable,” “harmonize,” and “joyful.” (Compare prefix.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.