-plex

American  

1. a combining form meaning “having parts or units” of the number specified by the initial element, occurring originally in loanwords from Latin (duplex; quadruplex ); recent English coinages ending in -plex, especially denoting structures with a given number of dwelling units, are probably in part new formations with this suffix and in part based on the noun complex: fourplex; eightplex; Cineplex; Metroplex.

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Usage

What does -plex mean? The combining form -plex is used like a suffix meaning “having parts or units.” It is often used in technical terms, especially to name buildings.The form -plex comes from Latin plicāre, meaning “to fold” or “to bend.” When -plex is used to denote a kind of building, the form -plex comes in part from a shortened form of complex, in the sense of "an intricate or complicated association or assemblage of related things, parts, units, etc." Complex comes from Latin complexus meaning "inclusion, grasping, embrace."

Etymology

Origin of -plex

< Latin -plex, -plic- (akin to plicāre to fold, bend, plectere to plait, braid; -fold ) + -s nominative singular ending