-ance


a suffix used to form nouns either from adjectives in -ant or from verbs:
brilliance; appearance.
-ance
suffix
indicating an action, state or condition, or quality hindrance, tenancy, resemblance compare -ence
word origin
via old french from latin -antia; see -ancy
-ance
suffix attached to verbs to form abstract nouns of process or fact (convergence from converge), or of state or quality (absence from absent); ult. from l. -antia and -entia, which depended on the vowel in the stem word. as old french evolved from latin, these were leveled to -ance, but later french borrowings from latin (some of them subsequently p-ssed to english) used the appropriate latin form of the ending, as did words borrowed by english directly from latin (diligence, absence). english thus inherited a confused m-ss of words from french and further confused it since c.1500 by restoring -ence selectively in some forms of these words to conform with latin. thus dependant, but independence, etc.

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  • -ancy

    a combination of -ance and -y, used to form nouns denoting state or quality: brilliancy. -ance suffix indicating an action, state or condition, or quality hindrance, tenancy, resemblance compare -ence word origin via old french from latin -antia; see -ancy -ancy suffix a variant of -ance, used to indicate condition or quality expectancy, poignancy, malignancy […]

  • -and

    suffix indicating a person or thing that is to be dealt with in a specified way -n-lysand, dividend, multiplicand word origin from latin gerundives ending in -andus, -endus

  • -androus

    a combining form meaning “male,” occurring as final element of a compound word: polyandrous. -androus combining form (in botany) indicating number or type of stamens diandrous word origin from new latin -andrus, from greek -andros, from anēr man

  • -andry

    a combining form occurring in nouns corresponding to adjectives ending in -androus: polyandry. -andry combining form indicating number of husbands polyandry word origin from greek -andria, from anēr man

  • -ane

    chemistry a suffix used in names of hydrocarbons of the methane or paraffin series: propane. -ane suffix indicating an alkane hydrocarbon hexane word origin coined to replace -ene, -ine, and -one -ane in chemical use, proposed 1866 by august wilhelm von hofmann to go with -ene, -ine, -one. -ane suff. a saturated hydrocarbon: hexane. -ane […]


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