This section covers the most common Latin suffixes, while the section at the bottom of this article provides a list of English suffixes that are derived from Latin suffixes.
The Latin suffix “-abilis,” means “capable of” or “worthy of,” and it forms adjectives from verbs. It creates adjectives that denote the ability or possibility of something, and it is the origin of the English suffix “-able”.
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| admirabilis | admirable |
| honorabilis | honorable |
| variabilis | variable |
| durabilis | durable |
| sociabilis | sociable |
| comparabilis | comparable |
| capabilis | capable |
| memorabilis | memorable |
The Latin suffix “-tas” and its alternate form “-itas” correspond to the English suffix “-ty” and are used to form abstract nouns from adjectives.
For instance, the Latin suffix “-itas” applied to the adjective “curiosus” results in the noun “curiositas,” meaning “curiosity.” Similarly, when applied to the adjective “activus” it produces the noun “activitas,” which translates to “activity” in English. Another example is the suffix “-itas” applied to the adjective “diversus” which produces the noun “diversitas,” meaning “diversity.”
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| possibilitas | possibility |
| immensitas | immensity |
| necessitas | necessity |
| conformitas | conformity |
| agilitas | agility |
| proximitas | proximity |
| claritas | clarity |
The Latin suffix “-tio” forms nouns from verbs. It is the origin of the English suffix “-tion.” Examples of Latin nouns formed with the “-tio” suffix include “communicatio,” which comes from the Latin verb “communico” and means “communication,” “occupatio,” which comes from the Latin verb “occupo” and means “occupation,” and “initiatio,” which comes from the Latin verb “initio” and means “initiation.”
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| imaginatio | imagination |
| navigatio | navigation |
| competitio | competition |
| educatio | education |
| descriptio | description |
| satisfactio | satisfaction |
-ability is a suffix which is used to form a noun from a verb or an adjective. It comes from the Latin suffix « -abilis ». (meaning “able”). Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: ability, vulnerability, sustainability and suitability.
-able is another English suffix which is derived from the Latin suffix « -abilis ». This one is used to create adjectives. Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: available, acceptable, reliable and comfortable.
-ac is a suffix which means “affected with”. An example of a vocabulary word with this suffix is maniac (a person who is affected by mania, an excessive enthusiasm or craze for something). Other words with this suffix include hypochondriac (a person who is excessively worried about their health), and kleptomaniac (a person who has an uncontrollable urge to steal).
-acity Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: capacity, opacity, audacity and tenacity.
-acy is derived from the Latin suffix « -ācia » which is a declined form of the Latin suffix « -āx ». Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: advocacy, accuracy and fallacy.
-ade : The word ending “-ade” in English creates nouns denoting a group, or collection. This word ending can be traced back to the Latin suffix “-ata”. Some common examples of words containing this suffix include arcade, decade, parade and promenade.
-age : The Latin suffix “-āticum” gave rise to the commonly used English word ending “-age”, which forms nouns indicating a state, action, or result. Some of the many examples of words created this way include patronage, homage, storage and package.
-al : The word ending “-al” in English is derived from the Latin suffix “-ālis”. It is used to form adjectives that describe a characteristic of the root word. Some common examples of words containing this suffix include central, original, natural and global.
-ance English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: performance, finance, maintenance and compliance.
-ancy Some examples of words formed using this suffix are consultancy, vacancy, accountancy and expectancy.
-ane Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: propane, methane, octane and butane.
-aneous is derived from the Latin suffix « -āneus » which means “pertaining to”. Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: miscellaneous, simultaneous, spontaneous and instantaneous.
-ant comes from the Latin suffix « -āns ». Some examples of words formed using this suffix are participant, resistant, compliant, and servant.
-arch comes from the Latin suffix “-archēs” which is itself a borrowing from ancient Greek. Some examples of words containing this suffix are: monarch, patriarch and matriarch.
-arium means “a place associated with a specified thing” and it originates from the Latin suffix « -ārium ». This suffix is used in English words such as: aquarium, solarium, planetarium and terrarium.
-ary : The suffix “-ary” is a common word ending in English used to form adjectives or nouns related to a particular concept. It comes from the Latin adjective suffix “-aris”. Some common examples of words containing this suffix include primary, visionary, dietary and legendary.
-ate means “having the specified feature” and it originates from the Latin suffix « -ātus ». This suffix is used in English words such as: appreciate, activate and validate.
-atim An example of a vocabulary word with this suffix is verbatim.
-ation This suffix appears in English words such as: information, situation, combination and consultation.
-ator Some examples of words formed using this suffix are creator, illustrator, and terminator.
-cide: The English suffix “-cide” comes from the Latin suffix “-cida”, which means “killer of”. This morpheme is often added to the end of a word to create a new term that refers to a substance or agent that kills something specific. Pesticide and herbicide are examples of such words, with pesticide being a substance used to kill pests like insects, rodents, or weeds, and herbicide being a substance used to kill unwanted plants or weeds.
-cy Some examples of words formed using this suffix are privacy, emergency, and accuracy.
-ence This suffix is used in English words such as: reference, difference, confidence and existence.
-ency is derived from the Latin suffix « -entia », and it is used to form abstract nouns. English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: emergency, deficiency, regency and constituency.
-ennial is derived from the Latin suffix « -ennialis », which originates from the Latin word « annus » meaning “year”. This suffix appears in English words such as: perennial, biennial, bicentennial and millennial.
-ent is derived from the Latin suffix « -ēns ». English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: different, student, excellent and talent.
-esce is derived from the Latin suffix « -ēscō » meaning “to become”. An example of an English vocabulary word with this suffix is coalesce.
-escence Some examples of words formed using this suffix are fluorescence and luminescence.
-escent Some examples of words formed using this suffix are iridescent and luminescent.
-esque : The suffix “-esque” is commonly used in English and it originates from the Latin suffix “-iscus” which means “in the style of”. Some common examples of words containing this suffix include picturesque and romanesque.
-ette comes from the Latin suffix “-itta” which which is the feminine form of “-ittus”, a diminutive suffix. This suffix is used in English words such as: roulette, cigarette, corvette and palette.
-ferous This suffix is used in English words such as: coniferous, carboniferous and vociferous.
-graphy comes from the Latin suffix “-graphia” which is itself a borrowing from ancient Greek. Some examples of words containing this suffix are: photography, filmography, discography and cryptography.
-ial is an English suffix which produces adjectives from nouns. Its origin is the Latin suffix « -ālis ». This suffix is used in English words such as: financial, commercial, potential and editorial.
-ian This suffix appears in English words such as: civilian, musician, and arcadian.
-ible is the English version of the Latin suffix « -ibilis », which means “able” or “worthy of”. Here are some examples of English vocabulary words containing this suffix: flexible, convertible, collectible and admissible.
-ic : The word ending “-ic” is derived from the Latin suffix “-icus”, meaning “belonging to” or “pertaining to”. It can be found in words such as pedantic, angelic, classic and generic.
-ical is the English version of the Latin suffix « -icus », which means “belonging to” or “derived from”. Some examples of English words formed using this suffix are classical, typical, biological and alphabetical.
-ific comes from the Latin suffix « -ficus » which is derived from the latin verb « facere » meaning “to make”. Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: prolific, specific, and honorific.
-ification is the English version of the Latin suffix « -ficātiō », which means “process of”. English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: classification, qualification, diversification and unification.
-ify is the English version of the Latin suffix « -ficus ». This suffix appears in English verbs such as: justify, clarify, indemnify and intensify.
-ile comes from the Latin suffix « -īlis ». English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: percentile and mercantile.
-ion This suffix appears in English words such as: education, location, action and connection.
-ise This suffix appears in English words such as: advertise, merchandise, expertise and franchise.
-ist : The suffix “-ist” (from “-ista” in Latin) is frequently used in English to form nouns describing a person specializing in a particular field or having a specific belief system. Some common examples of words containing this suffix include communist, guitarist, pianist and psychiatrist.
-itude is an English suffix which means “in a state of”. Its origin is the Latin suffix « -tūdō ». English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: amplitude, multitude and solitude.
-ity is an English suffix which produces nouns from adjectives. Its origin is the Latin suffix « -itās ». Some examples of words containing this suffix are: community, security, activity and opportunity.
-ium Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: calcium, millennium, sodium and titanium.
-ive is derived from the Latin adjective suffix « -īvus ». Some examples of words formed using this suffix are active, creative, respective and expensive.
-logy comes from the Latin suffix « -logia » which itself originates from Ancient Greek. This suffix refers to an academic discipline or a branch of knowledge, and it appears in many English words such as: technology, psychology, biology and ecology.
-metric English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: metric, biometric, econometric and volumetric.
-mony : The suffixes “-mony” in English and “-monium” in Latin are related. They are added to the end of words to create nouns that describe a condition of being, often associated with family or inheritance. For example, matrimony and patrimony are two common words that contain this suffix. Matrimony refers to being married, while patrimony refers to the property inherited from a male ancestor. Another example of a term with this suffix is alimony (a regular payment made to a spouse after a divorce).
-or Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: error, operator, investor and calculator.
-ory comes from the Latin suffix « -tōrius » and is used to form adjectives. This suffix is used in English words such as: advisory, statutory, sensory and supervisory.
-ose is a suffix with two different etymologies and meanings. The first one is from the Latin suffix « -ōsus » which means “prone to” or “full of”. The second etymology refers to the word “glucose” and is used to form the names of sugars. Some examples of words containing this suffix are: glucose, verbose, cellulose and lactose.
-osity : The suffix “-osity” is used to form abstract nouns that describe a quality or state of being. When added to a root word, it creates words that describe characteristics such as curiosity, generosity, viscosity and luminosity.
-otic Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: chaotic, psychotic, neurotic and biotic.
-ous : The suffix “-ous” is commonly used in English to form adjectives that describe a characteristic of something. Some common examples of words containing this suffix include dangerous, indigenous, curious and enormous.
-plex is a Latin-derived suffix meaning “with a number of parts”. English vocabulary words containing this suffix include: complex, duplex, multiplex.
-sion : The suffix “-sion” is a commonly used morpheme in English that is added to the end of a verb stem to create a noun that describes an action, state, or process. For example, introversion is a noun that describes the state of being introverted, while expansion refers to the process of becoming larger.
-spect : The suffix “-spect” is derived from the Latin word “specio,” which means “to look at” or “to observe”. It is commonly used in English to create words that relate to the act of seeing or observing. For instance, prospect refers to the possibility of seeing something happening, while the verb to inspect means to examine something closely. Retrospect, on the other hand, means looking back on past events.
-tion is a suffix used to form nouns which refer to the action of a verb. It originates from the Latin suffix « -tiō ». Some examples of words formed using this suffix are association, omission, attribution, and invention.
-tort is a suffix meaning “forcing a change of shape”, which comes from the Latin word « tortum ». This suffix is used in English words such as distort and extort.
-ual is an English suffix which originates from the Latin ending « -uālis » found in adjectives. Here are some examples of words containing this suffix: habitual, eventual, contextual and contactual.
-ure originates from the Latin suffix « -tūra » which is used to form nouns which express the results of actions. Some examples of words containing this suffix are: exposure, pleasure, expenditure and composure.
-uria This suffix comes from the Latin word “urina” which means “urine”.
-vore : The suffix “-vore” is derived from the Latin verb “voro,” which means “to devour.” It is commonly used in English to create words that describe animals based on their eating habits. For example, herbivore is a term used to describe animals that primarily feed on plants, while carnivore refers to animals that feed on other animals. Other examples of words that contain the “-vore” suffix include omnivore (an organism that eats both plants and animals) and insectivore (an animal that primarily feeds on insects).
-vorous This suffix has the same Latin origin as the suffix “-vore”. The difference is that this one is used to form adjectives while the other one forms nouns.
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.