-rel

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a noun suffix having a diminutive or pejorative force: wastrel.

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Also -erel.

Origin of -rel

Middle English <Old French -erel, -erelle

Words nearby -rel

rejuvenescent, rejuvenize, rekey, rekindle, rekt, -rel, reladle, re-laid, relapse, relapsing fever, relata

Other definitions for -rel (2 of 2)

rel.

abbreviation

relating.

relative.

relatively.

released.

religion.

religious.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use -rel in a sentence

We each catalog each other, all the time, just in case,” said Ariel Schulman, who goes by “Rel.
The Hottest Property at Sundance|Nicole LaPorte|January 25, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Aquarelle, ak-wa-rel′, n. water-colour painting, or a painting in water-colours.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various
I have knows he is that new saw rel horse I have heard the grandpa at the ranch-house say he was going to get.
The Story of Opal|Opal Whiteley
Pickerel, pik′e-rel, n. an American pike: a wading bird, the dunlin.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)|Various

That pick'rel pulled and I hung on and he took me clear to the bottom in eighteen foot of water.
Days in the Open|Lathan A. Crandall
I done know you is Mars Peters relatifs; but sho it dont seem like you was rel blood kin to de Stowers.
The Corner House Girls|Grace Brooks Hill

British Dictionary definitions for -rel (1 of 2)

-rel

suffix forming nouns

mainly disparaging indicating a person or thing viewed as diminutive, trivial, or worthlessmongrel; wastrel

British Dictionary definitions for -rel (2 of 2)

rel.

abbreviation for

relating

relative(ly)

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