definitions

-ance

a suffix used to form nouns either from adjectives in -ant or from verbs: brilliance; appearance.

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English Affixes From A To Z: A One-Stop List Of Suffixes, Prefixes, and Combining FormsIn English, we love to make new words by adding all sorts of bits to the front and back of existing terms. These are called affixes, and they are added to the base or stem of a word. When attached to the end of word, the affix is called a suffix. And to the beginning? A prefix.
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Nearby words

-ama, -amic, -amine, -an, -ana, -ance, -ancy, -and, -androus, -andry, -ane

Origin of -ance

Middle English < Old French < Latin -antia -ancy, equivalent to -ant- -ant + -ia -y3
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for -ance

-ance

-ancy

suffix forming nouns

indicating an action, state or condition, or qualityhindrance; tenancy; resemblance Compare -ence

Word Origin for -ance

via Old French from Latin -antia; see -ancy
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