FORMATION OF SUBSTANTIVES BY SUFFIXES FROM NOUNS

(1) -ade

This suffix corresponds to Latin -ata, which became in French -ée, e.g. am2i,\,2ù, aimée : it was reintroduced into French in the sixteenth century through Italian [-ada, -ata), and became -ade. The force of this prefix is as follows : —

(a) It expresses the action of the object denoted by the primary

noun, e.g. —

rœil, 'eye,' une œillade, 'a glance,' ' oghng ' ; la jambe, 'leg,' une gambade, ' gambol,' 'caper. '

(b) It indicates that the derived noun consists of, is made ^objects

denoted by the primary noun, e.g. —

une barrique, 'a cask,' une barricade, 'a barricade'; une balustre, 'baluster, ' 'raihng,' une balustrade, 'a balustrade' ; une colonne, 'a column,' une colon?îade, 'a colonnade'; le lifnon, 'a kind of lemon,' la limonade, ' lemonade. '

(c) In nouns formed by this suffix from verbs the substantive dénotes

simply the action or the resuit of the action expressed by the verb, e.g. —

griller, ' to grill,' la grillade, 'the griUing' ; ruer (of beasts), ' to kick,' la rtiade, ' the kicking,' ' the kick.'

Form substantives in -ade with the following, and give the English meaning of them : —

le galop la face un arc un estoc

Henri Rodo^nont Jérémie glisser

fusiller promener tirer embrasser

(2) -âge

This suffix corresponds to Latin -ati^jjjjUf which became -âge ; cf. Latin silvaticus, 'sauvage'; viaticum, 'voyage.' In popular Latin it formed adjectives, and so it did in Old French, viz. subst.

ombre, adj. ombrage in lieu ombrage ; subst. forme, adj. formage in lait formage (i.e. milk hardened in a form). Thèse adjectives are now the substantives V ombrage and le fromage. The sufifix -âge had also a collective force, as at présent in branchage, cordage, feuillage, nuage, vitrage, However, there are few instances in Modem French of new formations in which -âge has this force ; it is now almost exclusively added to verbs, and dénotes the action or the resuit of the action expressed by theverb, e.g. aborder, l'abordage ; blanchir, blanchissage.

To sum up, it will be noted that -âge has in Modem French the force of expressing —

(1) Action or resuit of the action, e.g.—

(^z) From nouns : le carnage, le langage, le ménage, V orage, (b) From verbs : V abordage, le passage, le plantage, V héritage,

(2) Condition or quaUty, e.g. —

V apprentissage (state of un apprenti), le courage (quaUty of having du cœur), V esclavage (state of un esclave), le veuvage (widowhood).

(3) Collection or augmentation, e.g. —

l'abeillage, le plumage, le voisinage, le marécage.

(4) Pertaining to (in concrète nouns), e.g. —

le village (belonging to the villa, manor), t ermitage (a hermit's dwelling), le visage (pertaining to sight, visum), le potage (what is put in the pot).

N.B. — The suffix -âge (-aticum) should not be mixed up with the suffixes -âge, -ige, coming from Latin a-go, i-go, which occur in image, vertige, etc.

Form substantives in -âge with the following, and give their English meaning, also note the force the suffix has on the meaning : —

le pays la cire marier emballer

la corde le bord atteler raccommoder

Véchafaud le brigand bavarder filer

(3) -ain, -ien

The suffix -ain corresponds to Latin -anus, -iaims. It served in Latin to form nouns and adjectives from nouns, e.g. villa, villanus ; Roma, Romanus. After palatals it has become -ienm. French, e. g. christiaiium, chrétien. The suffix -ain occurs only in old words, whilst -ien is still used to form new nouns, e.g. le gardien, le faubourien. A peculiar use of -ain, -aine is that in connexion with numbers, e.g. une huitaine, une douzaine, une centaine ; and un quatrain, un sixain, un dizain (in prosody to dénote a stanza of four, six, or ten lines).

Word-Formation

The suffix -ain dénotes : —

(1) Nationality, origin : —

un Romain y un Américai?i, un Napolitain.

When the Latin is -aeus it becomes -ée7i ; Europaeus,

EuropéeM ; Chaldaeus, Chaldéen ; Galilaeus, Galiléeii ; also

by analogy Vendéen.

Words of learned origin have -an for -aiius : Tuscanus, le

Toscan ; Pisanus, le Pisan ; Mantuamis, le Mantuan ;

also by analogy le Pa7'mesan, le Castilla7i, le Catalan. Words formed from Latin names of countries in -ia, and

often from names of peoples in -us, -ius, have -ien, e.g.

Assyrien, Béotien, Corinthien, Dorien, Indien, Phénicien ;

also by analogy Algérien, Alsacien, Bohémien, Parisien,

Prussien.

(2) Profession ; belonging to a certain class of men : — •

le chapelain, un écrivain ; un artisan, le paysan ; le patricien, V académicien^ le grammairien, le C07nédie?i^ le chrétien, le presbytérien ; le citoyen, le doyen {deca?iîcs), le païen (paganus).

(3) Collection (note that names of things with this suffix are mostly

féminine, and end in -aine or -ane), e.g. —

la se^naine [septimana), une douzaine, une centaine ; and the few masculine nouns used in prosody : le quatrain, le dixain or dizain.

Note also the following names for things : la tartane, 'tartan' (ship); la tra7nontane, ' north star'; la soutane, ' cassock. '

Form nouns in -ain, -ien, -an, -en, -aine, -ane from the following, and give their English meaning : —

castellanus veteranus tramontana Pisanus république publicanus fontana sottana Lacedaemonius collège

civitanus albana Romanus Boeotius treiite

decanus septimana Europaeus Messe?iius Wagner

(4) -aire, -ier

Thèse two suffixes correspond to Latin -a?'ius, -a, -um : -ai?'e occurs in words of learned formation, -ier in those of popular origin, e.g. primarium becomes at différent times primaire and premier. And at the end of the Middle Ages the suffix -er, derived from Latin words in -arefn, was confounded with -ier. So we have Old French boî/cler ïrom buccularem, piler from pilarem, escoler from scolarein, sangler from siiigularem, in Modem French in the form of bouclier, pilier, écolier, sanglier.

The suffix -arius formed in Latin numberless adj actives and also substantives. Its force is, generally speaking, to dénote that which belo7igs to, is peculiar to, and then by extension that which is suitable for, destined for. Applied to persons it dénotes a persan who occupies himself with a thing, and to things, a thing which contains, has in it, produces ; hence we find it in names of trees which are derived from the fruit they bear, for vessels in forms derived from their contents, and so they sometimes pass over to v^ords of collective meaning. Afterj/ and // {mouillé), also after ch and^, this suffix is -er instead of -ier.

Proceeding from thèse gênerai observations to particulars, we find that the force of words in -aire, -ier (fem. -ière) is as follows : —

As applied to persons the suffix dénotes : —

(1) Persons who are occupied with something (trade, profession), e.g. —

un libraire, ' a bookseller ' ; un banquier, ' a banker ' ; ti?t barbier, 'a barber' ; unécuyer, ' ashield-bearer' = j^:z//(2r^z^j/ un conseiller, ' a councillor * ; m?i archer (arcîis); un berger [vervecarius).

Note also : ujt bélier, ' a bell-wether ' ; un lévrier, ' a greyhound ' ; un limier, ' a stag-hound. '

(2) A tree which produces a certain fruit, e.g. —

un amandier, le cerisier, le figuier, le poirier.

Notice also le laurier, ' laurel-tree ' ; le peuplier, ' poplar-tree. '

(3) A vessel containing the thing named in the primary word, e.g. —

un grenier, ' granary ' ; un encrier, ' an ink-pot ' ; un huilier, 'an oil-cruet' ; une aiguière, 'a watering-can ' ; une saucière, * a sauce-dish ' ; une tabatière, * a snuff-box ' ; une ca?'rière, ' a quarry. '

(4) A thing which carries, belongs to, is used for that which the

primary word expresses, e.g. — un chandelier, ' a candlestick ' ; un clocher, ' a bell-tower ' ; un échiquier, ' a chess-board ' ; un tablier, ' an apron ' ; un collier, ' a necklace ' ; un oreiller, ' a pillow ' ; un annuaire, *a year-book,' 'almanack'; une boutonnière, ' a button-hole ' ; une litière, ' straw for a bed ' ; la barrière, 'barrier' ; la frontière, 'frontier,' 'boundary' ; la lisière, ' edge. '

(5) A place where that is found which the primary word

dénotes, e.g. —

zme rizière, ' a rice-field ' ; tme oignonière, ' an onion-bed ' ; une sablière, ' a sand-pit. '

(6) Collection, e.g. —

la ci'inière, 'mane'; la fourmilière, 'ant-hilL'

Word-Formation

F'orm nouns in -aire, -ier, -ière from the following, and give their English meaning ; also note the force of the suffix on the meaning : —

l'argent la pomme la pou lai lie la table la syllabe

le cheval la prune le poivre le lit la bibliothèque

la corde la cerise le thé le col le célibat

la geôle la fraise le bouton le sable la commission

(5) -ais, -ois

This suffix corresponds to Latin -ensem, which, in conséquence of its form -ese in popular Latin, became in French -eis, sometimes -is, then -oiSf which in Modem French is -ais. Thus there are three différent suffixes in M. F. which ail go back to -ensem. The force of this suffix is to dénote : —

(1) The names of districts, provinces, e.g. —

t Orléanais [Aurelianensis), le Lyonnais (Lugdzmensis), le Châtrais [Castrensis pagus).

(2) Names of persons expressing nationality or origin, e.g. —

le Carthaginois, le Badois, le Chinois, le Danois, le Gaulois, le Lyonnais, le Milanais, le Marseillais, l'Anglais, le Français, l'Écossais.

The same idea of belo?îging to is found in — le bourgeois, ' citizen ' ; le villageois, ' inhabitant of a village. '

Form nouns with the suffix -ais, -ois corresponding to the following, and give their English meaning : —

Milan Orléans Liège Bade

la Suède le Japon Genève Marseille

la Hongrie le bourg V Irlande le. village

(6) -at, -é

Thèse suffixes correspond to Latin -âtus of the fourth declension (senàtus). By popular formation -àtz^s has become -é in French, and by learned formation it has become -at. The force of thèse suffixes is to dénote : —

(i) Dignity, office, e.g. —

le consulat, l'apostolat, le cardinalat, V électoral. {2) The territory which is subject to a dignitary, e.g. —

le comté, le duché, Vévèché, le marquisat, le Palatinat. (3) Collectiveness : —

le sénat, le cle7gé.

(7) -ée

This suffix corresponds to Latin -âta, the féminine termination of the Past Part, of the first conjugation. Its force in French is to dénote : —

(1) Full, e.g. —

une assiettée, ' a plateful ' ; tme bouchée, ' sl mouthful. '

(2) A space of time, e.g. —

une année, ' a year long ' ; une jotirnée, ' a day long,' ' a day's work. '

(3) Collection, e.g. —

une nuée, * a collection of clouds ' ; la risée, ' laughter.'

Form nouns with the suffix -ée with the following, and give their English meaning : —

la gorge le plat la cuiller

le pot le matin le soir

une assiette la bouche le jour

(8) -erie

Whilst the suffix -ie, Lat. -ia, is mainly used for the formation of abstract nouns from adjectives, the suffix -erie, which suggests the combination of the ending -er of verbs and nouns, together with the suffix -ie, is used as an independent suffix for the formation of nouns. Its force is to dénote : —

( I ) Abstract nouns expressing the action or quality of the primary Word, e.g. —

le chevalier, la chevalerie; le poltron, la poltronnerie ; from verbs : causer, la causerie ; plaisanter, la plaisanterie ; Jlatter, la flatterie.

(2) Abstract nouns for a trade, occupation : —

la boulangerie, la pâtisserie, la bijouterie.

(3) Place, e.g.—

la bouverie, ' ox-stall ' ; la canarderie, ' duck-house * ; la juiverie, ' Jews' quarter ' ; la laiterie, ' dairy. '

(4) Collection, e.g. —

l'argenterie, ' silver,' 'plate'; la bijouterie, 'jewellery'; la maçonnerie, ' masonry, ' ' stonework. '

Form nouns with the suffix -erie with the following, and give their English meaning, also note the force of the suffix on the meaning : — le cavalier épicier huile argent

badiner le poltron berger verre

tricher la soie hôtelier causer

Word- Formation

(9) -isme

This suffix corresponds to Latin -isT^m^. It dénotes adhérence to certain principles and doctrines, or the totality of such principles and doctrines, e.g. —

r Aristoiélisme, le Platonisme, le christianisme, le judaïs7ne, le patriotisme, le communisme, V idéalisme, V égotis^ne.

Form nouns with the suffix -isme with the following, and give their EngHsh meaning : —

Calvin le charlatan le journal

le despoté Galvani ï idéal

(10) -iste

This suffix corresponds to Latin -ista. Its force is to dénote : —

(1) A person who pursues a certain art, branch of knowledge, or industry, e.g. —

un archiviste, U7i dentiste, U7t pianiste.

(2) A person who adhères to a certain principle or party, e.g. —

un moîiarchiste , un communiste, un matérialiste. Form nouns with the suffix -iste with the following, and give their English meaning : —

l'ébène l'art la morale

la drogue V anatomie la dent