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-ence

American  

  1. a noun suffix equivalent to -ance, corresponding to the suffix -ent in adjectives: abstinence; continence; dependence; difference .

-ence British  

suffix

  1. indicating an action, state, condition, or quality

    benevolence

    residence

    patience
"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

Etymology

Origin of -ence

Middle English < Old French < Latin -entia, equivalent to -ent- -ent + -ia -y 3

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.