suffix
[ noun suhf-iks; verb suhf-iks, suh-fiks ]
/ noun ˈsʌf ɪks; verb ˈsʌf ɪks, səˈfɪks /
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noun
Grammar. an affix that follows the element to which it is added, as -ly in kindly.
something added to the end of something else.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object) Grammar.
to admit a suffix.
to add a suffix.
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Origin of suffix
OTHER WORDS FROM suffix
suf·fix·al [suhf-ik-suhl, suh-fik-], /ˈsʌf ɪk səl, səˈfɪk-/, adjectivesuf·fix·a·tion [suhf-ik-sey-shuhn], /ˌsʌf ɪkˈseɪ ʃən/, suf·fix·ion [suh-fik-shuhn], /səˈfɪk ʃən/, nounun·suf·fixed, adjectiveDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use suffix in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for suffix
suffix
noun (ˈsʌfɪks)
grammar an affix that follows the stem to which it is attached, as for example -s and -ness in dogs and softnessCompare prefix (def. 1)
anything that is added at the end of something else
verb (ˈsʌfɪks, səˈfɪks)
(tr) grammar to add (a morpheme) as a suffix to the end of a word
(tr) to add (something) at the end of a sentence, comment, or piece of writing
Derived forms of suffix
suffixal (ˈsʌfɪksəl), adjectivesuffixion (sʌˈfɪkʃən), nounWord Origin for suffix
C18: from New Latin suffixum, from Latin suffixus fastened below, from suffīgere, from sub- + fīgere to fasten
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Cultural definitions for suffix
suffix
A letter or a group of letters added to the end of a word to change its meaning. For example, adding the suffix -ter to the adjective hot turns it into the comparative adjective hotter, and adding the suffix -ly to the adjective quick turns it into the adverb quickly. Other examples of words with suffixes are: “willing,” “management,” “serviceable,” “harmonize,” and “joyful.” (Compare prefix.)
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.