USING PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES 39
The following is a list of the suffixes you need to know for the practice questions
at the end of the chapter. For each suffix, we have again provided two examples of
words that use that suffix, and again, these examples are basic words that are part
of your everyday vocabulary.
◗ Noun Suffixes
-ance, -ence: action, process, or state of
adolescence (the state of growing up from childhood to adulthood; the transi-
tional period between youth and maturity), dependence (the state of being
dependent)-ian: one who is or does
comedian (one who creates comedy), politician (one who seeks or holds a polit-
ical office)-ion: act or process; state or condition
detection (the act of detecting), election (the act or power of electing)-ism: act, practice, or process; state or doctrine of
feminism (belief in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes),
materialism (the belief that the acquisition of material possessions is the
highest good)-ist: one who performs, makes, produces, believes, etc.
dentist (one who is trained and licensed to practice dentistry), pianist (one who
plays the piano)-ity: quality, state, or degree
equality (the state or quality of being equal), fidelity (the quality of being
faithful)-sis: process or action
diagnosis (the process of identifying the nature or cause of a disease or injury),
paralysis (loss of sensation or ability to move or function)-ure: act, process, function
enclosure (an area or thing that is enclosed), failure (something that has failed
to perform as expected or requested).