Latin Suffixes: a comprehensive guide

The most common Latin suffixes

This section covers the most common Latin suffixes, while the section below provides a list of English suffixes which are derived from Latin suffixes.

The Latin suffix “-abilis” is used to form adjectives from verbs

The English suffix “-able” comes from the Latin suffix “-abilis”

Table: Examples of words with the Latin suffix "-abilis"
Latin English
admirabilis admirable
honorabilis honorable
variabilis variable
durabilis durable
sociabilis sociable
comparabilis comparable
capabilis capable
memorabilis memorable

The Latin suffix “-tas” is used to form nouns from adjectives

The Latin suffix “-tas” corresponds to the English suffix “-ty”.

Some examples:

Table: Examples of words with the Latin suffix "-itas"
Latin English
possibilitas possibility
immensitas immensity
necessitas necessity
conformitas conformity
agilitas agility
proximitas proximity
claritas clarity

The Latin suffix “-tio” is used to form nouns from verbs

The Latin suffix “-tio” corresponds to the English suffix “-tion”.

Some examples:

Table: Examples of words with the Latin suffix "-tio"
Latin English
imaginatio imagination
navigatio navigation
competitio competition
educatio education
descriptio description
satisfactio satisfaction

List of English suffixes which come from Latin

Conclusion

To practice spotting Latin suffixes, have a look at this list of the 1000 most common Latin vocabulary words.

We have also published a guide to Latin prefixes.