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• ish
  ish

  adverb

  (used to modify or moderate something previously stated or as a vague reply to a question) somewhat; in a way; not exactly: “Are you tired?” “Yeah...ish.”
• -ish
  -ish

  a suffix used to form adjectives from nouns, with the sense of “belonging to” (British; Danish; English; Spanish ); “after the manner of,” “having the characteristics of,” “like” (babyish; girlish; mulish ); “addicted to,” “inclined or tending to” (bookish; freakish ); “near or about” (fiftyish; sevenish ).

ish

¹ American  

[ish] / ɪʃ /

adverb

Informal.

1. (used to modify or moderate something previously stated or as a vague reply to a question) somewhat; in a way; not exactly: “Are you tired?” “Yeah...ish.”

   It's a decent (ish) place to work.

   “Are you tired?” “Yeah...ish.”

   I'd like to get married. Ish.

2. near or about; approximately: It'll be a $25ish taxi ride.

   The lights went out at 11-ish.

   It'll be a $25ish taxi ride.

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-ish ² American  

1. a suffix used to form adjectives from nouns, with the sense of “belonging to” (British; Danish; English; Spanish ); “after the manner of,” “having the characteristics of,” “like” (babyish; girlish; mulish ); “addicted to,” “inclined or tending to” (bookish; freakish ); “near or about” (fiftyish; sevenish ).

2. a suffix used to form adjectives from other adjectives, with the sense of “somewhat,” “rather” (oldish; reddish; sweetish ).

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-ish ³ American  

1. a suffix occurring in i -stem verbs borrowed from French.

   ravish.

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-ish ¹ British  

suffix

1. of or belonging to a nationality or group

   Scottish

2. derogatory having the manner or qualities of; resembling

   slavish

   prudish

   boyish

3. somewhat; approximately

   yellowish

   sevenish

4. concerned or preoccupied with

   bookish

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ish ² British  

/ ɪʃ /

1. slang used to express reservation or qualified assent

   Things are looking up. Ish

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Etymology

Origin of ish¹

First recorded in 1985–90; from -ish ¹ ( def. ) (in the sense “somewhat”)

Origin of -ish²

Middle English; Old English -isc; cognate with German -isch, Old Norse -iskr, Gothic -isks, Greek diminutive noun suffix -isk(os); akin to -esque

Origin of -ish³

From French -iss-, extended stem of verbs with infinitives in -ir, ultimately from Latin -isc-, in verbs that express the beginning of an action or process

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ish -ish

Actually lost a very precious bracelet kilometer 75 ish in the crash if any founds it would be great!

From The Guardian ● Sep. 9, 2020

So how much ish, could an in-his-prime Nicklaus have earned as a “brand ambassador” in 2020?

From Golf Digest ● Jan. 21, 2020

“Look, I’m wearing this special underwear, they’re like super thick and absorbent, and kind of — ish — like a diaper, but they’re underwear,” Sam explains at length.

From New York Times ● Dec. 17, 2019

Right, I could've chosen anything that was sort of ish.

From Salon ● Nov. 3, 2018

"You ashked de tuff—de tuff—de hardesht queshtion in all feology. If God ish all good and if God ish all powerful, why doesh God let bad fings happen?"

From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz

She ate at Jimmy’s Kitchen, a European-ish institution with an emphasis on the -ish, and listened to blind men coax nostalgia from the erhu, a Chinese stringed instrument.

From New York Times ● Jun. 30, 2023

“We’ve spent nearly a decade telling our stories through the -ish series and to say it has been an amazing journey would be an understatement,” “Black-ish” and “Grown-ish” creator Kenya Barris said in a statement.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2023

It’s also, explains Ms. Warsawski, “a place for people who are more -ish than Jew.”

From New York Times ● Sep. 18, 2019

When the suffix begins with i, as in -ing and -ish, the y is retained to avoid having double i.

From Practical High School Speller by Various