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-ous

  1. a suffix forming adjectives that have the general sense “possessing, full of ” a given quality ( covetous; glorious; nervous; wondrous ); -ous and its variant -ious have often been used to Anglicize Latin adjectives with terminations that cannot be directly adapted into English ( atrocious; contiguous; garrulous; obvious; stupendous ). As an adjective-forming suffix of neutral value, it regularly Anglicizes Greek and Latin adjectives derived without suffix from nouns and verbs; many such formations are productive combining forms in English, sometimes with a corresponding nominal combining form that has no suffix; Compare -fer, -ferous; -phore, -phorous; -pter, -pterous; -vore, -vorous.
  2. a suffix forming adjectival correspondents to the names of chemical elements; specialized, in opposition to like adjectives ending in -ic, to mean the lower of two possible valences ( stannous chloride, SnCl 2 , and stannic chloride SnCl 4 ).


-ous

suffix forming adjectives

  1. having, full of, or characterized by

    spacious

    languorous

    dangerous

  2. (in chemistry) indicating that an element is chemically combined in the lower of two possible valency states Compare -ic

    stannous

    ferrous

“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


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Word History and Origins

Origin of -ous1

Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin -ōsus; a doublet of -ose 1
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Word History and Origins

Origin of -ous1

from Old French, from Latin -ōsus or -us, Greek -os, adj suffixes
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Example Sentences

Jurgens seen the flag through that, an' bein' of a cur'ous disposition he put in to investigate.

Oh, when my wife died, I wanted sum 'un to take care of the childern, so I takes Peg into the 'ous.

Throth an' I'm cur'ous to see did they ever swell out agin, afther the parchin' they got.'

Many's the time I heard your grandpaw say them's the most dang'ous kind.

Other wies, hit had rid ous of all our poour substans of plat and other thinges.

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