-ous
American-
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;
-
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 SnCl4 ).
suffix
-
having, full of, or characterized by
dangerous
spacious
languorous
-
(in chemistry) indicating that an element is chemically combined in the lower of two possible valency states Compare -ic
ferrous
stannous
Etymology
Origin of -ous
Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin -ōsus; a doublet of -ose 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In three previous men's marathon races, the largest margin of victory was 3.4 seconds by Ous Mellouli at London in 2012.
From Fox News • Aug. 4, 2021
Souhel and Ous had already visited them once, and they were planning to return in the morning.
From The New Yorker • Jan. 29, 2017
“My dad works as a customs policeman, and the boss of his boss would call him up and say, ‘We didn’t hear Ous dedicate his medal to the president.’ ”
From New York Times • Mar. 5, 2011
World and Olympic champion Ous Mellouli of Tunisia was last in the timed final.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 19, 2010
They were distinguished by Marquette in 1673 as the "Ouchage" and "Autrechaha," and by Penicaut in 1719 as the "Huzzau," "Ous," and "Wawha."
From The Siouan Indians by McGee, W. J. (William John)
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.
