English for the Eager Learners

Suffixes
Different suffixes can help us easily understand whether a word is a noun,
verb or adjective and hence their meanings. (Please try to memorize them.)
Of Nouns
(1) Denoting mainly the agent or doer of a thing.
-ain (-an, -en, -on)
-ate (-ee, -ey, -y)
-ar (-er, -eer, -ier, -ary)
(2) Denoting state, action, result of an action.
-cy
ca ptain, musician,
citizen, surgeon.
-age
marriage, leakage,
bondage.
fancy, accuracy,
bankruptcy
-ty
difficulty,
advocate, employee,
attorney, company.
-ness-ship
darkness, goodness,
sweetness, boldness.
beauty, cruelty.
-ion
action, union,
opinion.
-ure
scholar, teacher, engineer,
financier, missionary.
-ance (-ence)
brilliance, assistance,
excellence, innocence.
-er (-ar, -or, -yer)
-th
friendship, partnership,
hardship.
pleasure, picture,
treasure.
painter, beggar,
sailor, employer.
health, growth,
strength.
-ling
duckling, darling,
nestling.
-dom
-ment
freedom, wisdom,
kingdom.
-ice (-ise)
punishment, judgment,
improvement.
service, practice,
exercise.
-y
victory, story,
misery.
Lesson 2
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