Word Formation: Suffixes
There are four main kinds of word formation: prefixes, suffixes, conversion and compounds. Lots of words are formed with suffixes. In English, there are hundreds of suffixes. Derivational suffixes are used to create new words by changing the meaning or part of speech. A suffix is a letter or a group of letters attached to the end of a word to form a new word or change the grammatical function (or part of speech) of the word.
Here are some common noun suffixes in English:
-er / -or → teacher, actor, worker, driver, doctor, director, inspector
-ist → artist, scientist, physicist, agronomist
-ian → musician, historian, electrician, librarian
-ant / -ent → assistant, student, servant, resident
-ee → employee, refugee, payee, trainee, nominee
-ness → kindness, happiness, darkness, sadness, weakness
-ment → development, government, argument, employment
-ion / -ation / -ition → celebration, education, competition, decoration, connection
-sion → conversion, decision, confusion, explosion, division
-ity / -ty → ability, honesty, beauty, simplicity, identity, difficulty
-ance / -ence → importance, existence, maintenance, assurance
-acy → privacy, delicacy, democracy, privacy
-ship → friendship, leadership, partership, membership
-hood → childhood, neighborhood, brotherhood
-dom → freedom, kingdom, wisdom, boredom
-ism → realism, optimism, feminism, patriotism
Have Practice
Exercise 1. Complete the sentences by adding the correct noun suffix to the words in parentheses.
- She showed great ________ (kind) to the new student.
- His ________ (assist) was very helpful during the project.
- They celebrated their 10-year ________ (friend).
- The company’s ________ (develop) has been very fast.
- We need more ________ (educate) on climate change.
- The king ruled over a large ________ (king).
- His ________ (honest) made him a trustworthy person.
- The new law will help improve ________ (safe) in the city.
- She is a talented ________ (music).
- The ________ (compete) was very tough this year.
Exercise 2. Match the noun with the correct definition.
artist leadership childhood freedom employment
a) the time when a person is a child
b) the state of having a job
c) the ability to make decisions and guide others
d) the state of being free
e) a person who creates art
scientist honesty kingdom friendship creativity
a) the ability to think of new ideas
b) a person who studies and experiments in science
c) the quality of being truthful
d) a close and trusting relationship between people
e) a country or region ruled by a king or queen
Exercise 3. Each sentence below contains a mistake. Find and correct it.
- She is a great teachership.
- The governation announced a new policy.
- His friendlyness makes him popular.
- She is an experience acter.
- The protectment of animals is important.
- He is a successness businessman.
- The developion of the city took many years.
- Their childing was full of happy memories.
- She wants to become a professionist chef.
- The celebrateion was full of music and dance.
Common Suffixes for Verbs
Suffixes are added to words to form verbs, changing their meaning or function. Here are some common verb suffixes with examples:
Suffix | Example Words | Meaning |
---|---|---|
-ate | activate, educate, celebrate | to make or cause something to happen |
-en | strengthen, darken, widen | to become or make something more |
-ify | simplify, beautify, classify | to make or turn into |
-ise / -ize | organize, realize, advertise | to make or perform an action |
Do these exercises:
Exercise 1. Complete the sentences by adding the correct verb suffix to the words in parentheses.
- The new rules will _______ (simple) the process.
- We need to _______ (dark) the room for the presentation.
- He wants to _______ (beauty) his garden with flowers.
- The company will _______ (modern) its office building.
- The coach helps to _______ (strong) the team’s skills.
Exercise 2. Select the correct word for each sentence.
- The teacher tried to (educate / education) the students about history.
- We need to (advertise / advertisement) our new product.
- Can you (organize / organization) the files properly?
- She wants to (classify / classification) the documents by date.
- The artist decided to (simplify / simple) the design.
Exercise 3. Each sentence contains a mistake. Find and correct it.
- The teacher encouragened the students to read more books.
- We need to beautifull our schoolyard with plants.
- The government plans to moderning the transport system.
- The manager organizated a big event for the company.
- This exercise will help you strongness your muscles.
Exercise 4. Complete the table by changing the base words into verbs using the correct suffix.
Noun/Adjective | Verb Form |
---|---|
beauty | ___________ |
strength | ___________ |
modern | ___________ |
simple | ___________ |
class | ___________ |
real | ___________ |
active | ___________ |
dark | ___________ |
terror | ___________ |
critic | ___________ |
Common Suffixes for Adjectives
Adjective suffixes help form adjectives from nouns or verbs, often indicating quality, condition, or relation.
Suffix | Example Words | Meaning |
---|---|---|
-able / -ible | comfortable, visible | can be done or capable of |
-al | personal, cultural | related to or having the quality of |
-ful | hopeful, beautiful | full of |
-ic | heroic, poetic | related to |
-ive | active, creative | having a certain quality |
-less | fearless, helpless | without |
-ous | dangerous, famous | full of, having |
-y | sunny, happy | having the quality of |
-ish | childish, foolish | like or similar to |
-en | golden, wooden | made of |
Have Practice on Using Adjective Suffixes
Exercise 1. Complete the sentences by adding the correct adjective suffix to the words in parentheses.
- The weather is very _______ (sun) today.
- She gave me a _______ (hope) smile.
- This bag is not _______ (wash), so be careful.
- He is a very _______ (act) child.
- That was a very _______ (fame) singer.
Exercise 2. Choose the correct adjective to complete each sentence.
- The mountain path is very (dangerous / dangerful) in winter.
- I need a more (comfort / comfortable) chair for my desk.
- His idea was very (create / creative) and unique.
- The children were being (childish / childful) and silly.
- That wooden sculpture is truly (beauty / beautiful).
Exercise 3. Each sentence contains a mistake. Find and correct it.
- She is a very helpness person who never supports others.
- The story was very emotionable and made me cry.
- His new car is so expenseless that nobody can afford it.
- He is a talentic musician with great skills.
- I love the goldy color of this dress.
Exercise 4. Complete the table by changing the base words into adjectives using the correct suffix.
Noun/Verb | Adjective Form |
---|---|
care | ___________ |
use | ___________ |
beauty | ___________ |
wonder | ___________ |
color | ___________ |
power | ___________ |
child | ___________ |
fame | ___________ |
create | ___________ |
success | ___________ |
Common Suffixes for Adverbs
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs and often describe how, when, where, or to what extent something happens. Here are some common suffixes for adverbs:
Suffix | Example Words | Meaning |
---|---|---|
-ly | quickly, easily, happily | describes how something is done |
-ward / -wards | forward, backwards | direction or movement |
-wise | otherwise, clockwise | in a particular manner or direction |
-fully | hopefully, carefully | full of or in a manner of |
-some | winsome, bothersome | in a certain way, usually describing a quality |
Exercises on Adverb Suffixes
Exercise 1. Complete the sentences by adding the correct adverb suffix to the words in parentheses.
- She worked _______ (quick) to finish the project on time.
- The children played _______ (care) in the park.
- I think he will respond _______ (positive) to your suggestion.
- They arrived _______ (early) at the station to catch the first train.
- We should approach the problem _______ (careful).
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