a suffix of adjectives of Greek or Latin origin, meaning “of or pertaining to,” “of the nature of,” “made of,” “like”: asinine; crystalline; equine; marine.
a suffix, of no assignable meaning, appearing in nouns of Greek, Latin, or French origin: doctrine; famine; routine.
a noun suffix used particularly in chemical terms (bromine; chlorine), and especially in names of basic substances (amine; aniline; caffeine; quinine; quinoline).Compare -in2.
a suffix of feminine nouns (heroine), given names (Clementine), and titles (landgravine).
suffix used to form adjectives from nouns, from French -ine, fem. of -in, or directly from Latin -inus "of, like."
2
chemical suffix, sometimes -in, though modern use distinguishes them; early 19c., from French -ine, from Latin -ina, fem. form of suffix used to form adjectives from nouns. In French commonly used to form words for derived substances, hence its extended use in chemistry.
