List of English Suffixes

Our suffix word lists are the second part of our comprehensive root word tables:

Suffixes are word endings that add a certain meaning to the word.

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a-d    e-h    i-m    n-r    s-z

 

Suffix			Meanings	Sample Words and Definitions
		-able	able to be	excitable, portable, preventable
		-ac	pertaining to	cardiac, hemophiliac, maniac
		-acity (-ocity)	quality of	perspicacity, sagacity, velocity
		-ade	act, action or process, product	blockade, cavalcade, promenade,
		-age	action or process	passage, pilgrimage, voyage
		-aholic (-oholic)	one with an obsession for	workaholic, shopaholic, alcoholic
		-al	relating to	bacterial, theatrical, natural
		-algia	pain	neuralgia, nostalgia,
		-an (-ian)	relating to, belonging to	Italian, urban, African
		-ance	state or quality of	brilliance, defiance, annoyance
		-ant	a person who	applicant, immigrant, servant
			inclined to, tending to	brilliant, defiant, vigilant
		-ar	of or relating to, being	lunar, molecular, solar
			a person who	beggar, burglar, liar
		-ard	a person who does an action	coward, sluggard, wizard
		-arian	a person who	disciplinarian, vegetarian, librarian
		-arium (orium)	a place for	terrarium, aquarium, solarium
		-ary	of or relating to	literary, military, budgetary
		-ate	state or quality of (adj.)	affectionate, desolate, obstinate
			makes the word a verb (different pronunciation)	activate, evaporate, medicate
		-ation	action or process	creation, narration, emancipation
		-ative	tending to (adj.)	creative, preservative, talkative
		-cide	act of killing	homicide, suicide, genocide
		-cracy	rule, government, power	bureaucracy, aristocracy, theocracy
		-crat	someone who has power	aristocrat, bureaucrat, technocrat
		-cule	diminutive (making something small)	molecule, ridicule,
		-cy	state, condition or quality	efficiency, privacy, belligerency
		-cycle	circle, wheel	bicycle, recycle, tricycle
		-dom	condition of, state, realm	boredom, freedom, wisdom
		-dox	belief, praise	orthodox, paradox
		-ectomy	surgical removal of	appendectomy, hysterectomy
		-ed	past tense	called, hammered, laughed
		-ee	receiver, performer	nominee, employee, devotee
		-eer	associated with/engaged in	engineer, volunteer
		-emia	blood condition	anemia, hypoglycemia, leukemia
		-en	makes the word a verb	awaken, fasten, strengthen
		-ence	state or condition, action	absence, dependence, negligence
		-ency	condition or quality	clemency, dependency, efficiency
		-ent	inclined to performing/causing, or one who performs/causes	competent, correspondent, absorbent
		-er	more	bigger, faster, happier
			action or process	flutter, ponder, stutter
			a person who does an action	announcer, barber, teacher
		-ern	state or quality of	eastern, northern, western
		-escence	state or process	adolescence, convalescence
		-ese	relating to a place	Chinese, Congolese, Vietnamese
		-esque	in the style of	Kafkaesque, grotesque, burlesque
		-ess	female	actress, heiress, lioness
		-est	most	funniest, hottest, silliest
		-etic	relating to (makes the word an adj.)	athletic, energetic, poetic
		-ette	diminutive (makes something smaller)	cigarette, diskette, kitchenette
		-ful	full of	helpful, thankful, cheerful
		-fy	make, cause (makes the word a verb)	amplify, falsify, terrify
		-gam/gamy	marriage, union	monogam, polygamy
		-gon/gonic	angle	hexagon, polygonic, pentagon
		-hood	state, condition, or quality	childhood, neighborhood, motherhood
		-ial	relating to	celestial, editorial, martial
		-ian	relating to	Martian, utopian, pediatrician
		-iasis	diseased condition	elephantiasis, psoriasis
		-iatric	healing practice	pediatric, psychiatric,
		-ible	able to be	audible, plausible, legible
		-ic/ical	relating to, characterized by	analytic/al, comic/al, organic
		-ile	relating to, capable of	agile, docile, volatile
		-ily	in what manner	sloppily, steadily, zanily
		-ine	relating to	canine, feminine, masculine
		-ing	materials	bedding, frosting, roofing
			action or process	dancing, seeing, writing
		-ion	action or process	celebration, completion, navigation
		-ious	having the qualities of, full of	ambitious, cautious, gracious
		-ish	relating to, characteristic	apish, brutish, childish
		-ism	state or quality	altruism, despotism, heroism
		-ist	a person, one who does an action	artist, linguist, pianist
		-ite	resident of, follower, product of	suburbanite, luddite, dynamite
		-itis	inflammation, preoccupation	appendicitis, tonsillitis, frontrunneritis
		-ity	state, condition, or quality	abnormality, civility, necessity
		-ive	inclined to; quality of; that which	attractive, expensive, repulsive
		-ization	act or process of making	colonization, fertilization, modernization
		-ize	cause, treat, become	antagonize, authorize, popularize
		-less	without	fearless, helpless, homeless
		-let	version of	booklet, droplet, inlet
		-like	resembling, characteristic	childlike, homelike, lifelike
		-ling	younger or inferior	duckling, underling
		-loger/logist	one who does	astrologer, cardiologist, chronologer
		-log	speech	dialog, monolog,
		-ly	in what manner	badly, courageously, happily
		-ment	action, result	movement, placement, shipment
		-ness	state or quality (makes a noun)	kindness, shyness, weakness
		-oid	resembling	humanoid, tabloid, hemorrhoid
		-ology	study of, science of	anthropology, archaeology, biology
		-oma	tumor, swelling	carcinoma, osteoma, hematoma
		-onym	name, word	synonym, antonym, homonym
		-opia	eye defect	myopia, nyctalopia, hyperopia
		-opsy	examination	biopsy, autopsy, necropsy
		-or	a person who	inventor, legislator, translator
		-ory	relating to	armory, dormitory, laboratory
		-osis	process, diseased condition	diagnosis, prognosis, neurosis, psychosis
		-ostomy/otomy	surgical	colostomy, lobotomy, craniotomy
		-ous	full of	hazardous, humorous, wondrous
		-path	one who engages in	homeopath, naturopath, psychopath
		-pathy	feeling, diseased	sympathy, apathy, neuropathy
		-phile	one who loves	bibliophile, audiophile, pyrophile
		-phobia	abnormal fear of	acrophobia, claustrophobia, xenophobia
		-phone	sound	homophone, telephone, microphone
		-phyte	plant, to grow	zoophyte, cryptophyte, epiphyte
		-plegia	paralysis	paraplegia, quadriplegia, hemiplegia
		-plegic	one who is paralyzed	paraplegic, technoplegic, quadriplegic
		-pnea	air, spirit	apnea, hyperpnea, orthopnea
		-scopy/scope	visual exam	arthroscopy, gastroscopy, microscope
		-scribe/script	to write	transcript, describe, manuscript
		-sect	to cut	dissect, insect, bisect
		-ship	state or condition of, skill of	authorship, citizenship, friendship
		-sion	state or quality	confusion, depression, tension
		-some	characterized by, group of	cumbersome, quarrelsome, foursome
		-sophy/sophic	wisdom, knowledge	philosophy, theosophy, anthroposophic
		-th	state or quality	depth, length, strength
		-tion	state or quality	attention, caution, fascination
		-tome/tomy	to cut	hysterectomy, epitome, tonsillotome
		-trophy	nourishment, growth	atrophy, hypertrophy, dystrophy
		-tude	state, condition or quality	fortitude, gratitude, magnitude
		-ty	state, condition or quality	ability, honesty, loyalty
		-ular	relating to or resembling	cellular, circular, muscular
		-uous	state or quality of	arduous, tumultuous, virtuous
		-ure	action, condition	closure, erasure, failure
		-ward	specifies direction	backward, eastward, homeward
		-ware	things of the same type or material	hardware, software, kitchenware
		-wise	in what manner or direction	clockwise, lengthwise, otherwise
		-y	made up of, characterized	brainy, fruity, gooey