-cle
1a suffix found in French loanwords of Latin origin, originally diminutive nouns, and later in adaptations of words borrowed directly from Latin or in New Latin coinages: article;conventicle;corpuscle;particle.
Origin of -cle
1Words Nearby -cle
Other definitions for -cle (2 of 2)
a suffix found in French loanwords of Latin origin, later in adaptations of words borrowed directly from Latin; in Latin, this suffix formed from verbs nouns that denoted a place appropriate to the action of the verb (cubicle, receptacle) or a means by which the action is performed (vehicle).
Origin of -cle
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use -cle in a sentence
CLE Why has not my heart sufficient resolution to punish this infamous scoundrel?
Amphitryon | MoliereCle-Syria was, like the north of Mesopotamia, in repute for its cattle.
History of Julius Caesar Vol. 1 of 2 | Napoleon III, Emperor of the French, 1808-1873."Ez clean an' ez cle'r ez the pa'm er my han'," replied Uncle Jake, with emphasis.
Mingo | Joel Chandler HarrisTrea′cle-sleep, a sweet and refreshing sleep; Trea′cliness, viscosity.
Cle'lia or Cloe'lia, a Roman maiden, one of the hostages given to Por'sena.
Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol 1 | The Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D.
British Dictionary definitions for -cle
indicating smallness: cubicle; particle
Origin of -cle
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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