affix

[verb uh-fiks; noun af-iks]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR affix ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to fasten, join, or attach (usually followed by to): to affix stamps to a letter.

to put or add on; append: to affix a signature to a contract.

to impress (a seal or stamp).

to attach (blame, reproach, ridicule, etc.).

noun

something that is joined or attached.

Grammar. a bound inflectional or derivational element, as a prefix, infix, or suffix, added to a base or stem to form a fresh stem or a word, as -ed added to want to form wanted, or im- added to possible to form impossible.

Compare combining form.

Origin of affix

1525–35; < Latin affīxus fastened to (past participle of affīgere), equivalent to af- af- + fīg- fasten + -sus, variant of -tus past participle suffix

Related formsaf·fix·a·ble, adjectiveaf·fix·al

[a-fik-suh l] /æˈfɪk səl/, af·fix·i·al

[a-fik-see-uh l] /æˈfɪk si əl/, adjectiveaf·fix·er, nounaf·fix·ment, nounre·af·fix, verb (used with object)un·af·fixed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for affix

fasten, glue, paste, tack, append, join, annex, bind, subjoin, add, tag, rivet

Examples from the Web for affix

Contemporary Examples of affix

But what we don't get from Rubin or Harris is why exactly Hagel refused to affix his name to the letter.
AJC Leaves Out Context Of Hagel Letters
Ali Gharib
December 20, 2012
And he did, in fact, affix his Hancock to the tax increases in question.
2012 GOP Presidential Candidates Raised Taxes
Andrew Romano
April 19, 2011

Historical Examples of affix

These are, however, reports to which I do not affix much credit.
Memoirs of the Court of St. Cloud, Complete
Lewis Goldsmith
To neither did he affix his name, but the latter was said to be by “a Gentleman of Oxford.”
The Poetical Works of William Collins
William Collins
Affix them to the bench by nails or screws, preferably the latter.
Electricity for Boys
J. S. Zerbe
On the right is the pear-tree, to which later on we have to affix a captive pear.
Punch, or the London Charivari, June 10, 1914
Various
The Father of his Country did not affix his revered name to so palpable an absurdity.
Key-Notes of American Liberty
Various

British Dictionary definitions for affix

affix

verb (əˈfɪks) (tr; usually foll by to or on)

to attach, fasten, join, or stickto affix a poster to the wall

to add or appendto affix a signature to a document

to attach or attribute (guilt, blame, etc)

noun (ˈæfɪks)

a linguistic element added to a word or root to produce a derived or inflected form: -ment in establishment is a derivational affix; -s in drowns is an inflectional affixSee also prefix, suffix, infix

something fastened or attached; appendage

Derived Formsaffixation (ˌæfɪkˈseɪʃən) or affixture (əˈfɪkstʃə), noun

Word Origin for affix

C15: from Medieval Latin affixāre, from ad- to + fixāre to fix

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

Word Origin and History for affix

1530s, from Medieval Latin affixare, frequentative of Latin affigere (past participle affixus) "fasten to, attach," from ad- "to" (see ad-) + figere "fasten" (see fix (v.)).

First used by Scottish writers and perhaps from Middle French affixer, a temporarily re-Latinized spelling of Old French afichier (Modern French afficher). Related: Affixed; affixing.

1610s, from affix (v.).