-on

See also: Appendix:Variations of "on"

English

Etymology

(Physics) From -on in electron, reinforced by Ancient Greek -ον (-on) ending neuter nouns and adjectives.
(Chemistry) From -on in carbon, first applied to boron and then to silicon.

Suffix

-on

(physics, mathematics and biology) Forming nouns denoting subatomic particles (proton), quanta (photon), molecular units (codon), or substances (interferon).
(biology, genetics) Forming names of things considered as basic or fundamental units, such as codon or recon.
(chemistry) Forming names of noble gases and certain nonmetal elements (such as boron or silicon).

Derived terms

English terms suffixed with -on

Translations

(physics) subatomic particles

Catalan: -ó (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 子 (zh) (zǐ)
Dutch: -on (nl)
French: -on (fr) m
German: -on (de) n
Gujarati: -અણુ (-aṇu)
Hindi: -अणु (-aṇu)
Interlingua: -on
Italian: -one m
Japanese: 子 (ja) (shi)
Marathi: -अणू (-aṇū)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: -on
Portuguese: -ão (pt) m (Portugal), -on (pt) m (Brazil)
Russian: -он (ru) m (-on)
Spanish: -ón (es) m

(genetics) basic or fundamental units

French: -on (fr)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: -on
Russian: -он (ru) m (-on)

(chemistry) nonmetal element

Norwegian:
Bokmål: -on

Anagrams

N.O., NO, No, No., no, no.

Cebuano

Alternative forms

-hon (after vowels without glottal stops).

Etymology

From Proto-Philippine *ən, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *ən, from Proto-Austronesian *ən (see Ilocano -en and Tagalog -in).

Suffix

-on

Used to form nouns indicating objects, persons or action expressed by the root.
Demonym-forming suffix.
Object trigger verb suffix.

Derived terms

Cebuano terms suffixed with -on

Danish

Suffix

-on

(organic chemistry) -one

Dutch

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɔn/
Audio (file)

Suffix

-on

(organic chemistry) -one
(particles) -on

Synonyms

oxo-

Derived terms

Dutch terms suffixed with -on

Related terms

keton

Finnish

Suffix

-on

Suffix variant for the illative singular, see -Vn.

Anagrams

no

French

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɔ̃/

Etymology 1

From Old French -on, a blending of Latin -ōnem (accusative singular of -ō, masculine appellative suffix), Frankish *-on (accusative of *-ō, ending of masculine weak declension nouns), Frankish *-in (diminutive suffix), and *-ing (diminutive suffix for animals, via -enc, -enz). Some also descend from the Celtic singulative *-onos, such as mouton.

Suffix

-on

Forming diminutives of things, including some animals.
‎chat (“cat”) + ‎-on → ‎chaton (“kitten”)
‎ours (“bear”) + ‎-on → ‎ourson (“cub”)
Forming augmentatives of things.
‎médaille (“medal”) + ‎-on → ‎médaillon (“medallion”)
Indicating origin or occupation.
‎marmite (“cooking pot”) + ‎-on → ‎marmiton (“pot and pan washer; kitchen porter”)
‎quartier (“quarter”) + ‎-on → ‎quarteron (“quarter of a pound”)

Descendants

→ English: -oon

Etymology 2

From Ancient Greek -ον (-on), neuter of -ος (-os), masculine adjective ending.

Suffix

-on

(physics and biology) -on

Derived terms

French terms suffixed with -on

Forming diminutives

buisson
brocheton
chanson
housson
ourson
ponton
raton
saucisson

Gothic

Romanization

-ōn

Romanization of -𐍉𐌽

Hungarian

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [on]

Etymology 1

Pronominal adverbs from case suffixes (cf. postpositions)
ed	suffix	who?	what?	this	that	he/she (it)*
case	suffix	who?	what?	this	that	he/she (it)*	v. pr.	c.
nom.	–	ki	mi	ez	az	ő* / -∅ az / -∅	–	–
acc.	-t / -ot / -at / -et / -öt	kit	mit	ezt	azt	őt* / -∅ azt / -∅	–	c₁ c₂
dat.	-nak / -nek	kinek	minek	ennek	annak	neki	neki-	c
ins.	-val / -vel	kivel	mivel	ezzel/ evvel	azzal/ avval	vele		c
c-f.	-ért	kiért	miért	ezért	azért	érte	–	c
tra.	-vá / -vé	kivé	mivé	ezzé	azzá	–	–	c
ter.	-ig	–	meddig	eddig	addig	–	–	c
e-f.	-ként	(kiként)	(miként)	ekként	akként	–	–	c
e-m.	-ul / -ül	–	–	–	–	–	–	c
ine.	-ban / -ben	kiben	miben	ebben	abban	benne	–	c
sup.	-n/-on/-en/-ön	kin	min	ezen	azon	rajta	(rajta-)	c
ade.	-nál / -nél	kinél	minél	ennél	annál	nála	–	c
ill.	-ba / -be	kibe	mibe	ebbe	abba	bele	bele-	c
sub.	-ra / -re	kire	mire	erre	arra	rá	rá-	c
all.	-hoz/-hez/-höz	kihez	mihez	ehhez	ahhoz	hozzá	hozzá-	c
el.	-ból / -ből	kiből	miből	ebből	abból	belőle	–	c
del.	-ról / -ről	kiről	miről	erről	arról	róla	–	c
abl.	-tól / -től	kitől	mitől	ettől	attól	tőle	–	c
: Ő and őt refer to human beings; the forms below them might be construed likewise. – Forms in parentheses are uncommon. All »*

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Suffix

-on

(case suffix) on. Used to form the superessive case.
asztal (“table”) → az asztalon (“on the table”)

Usage notes

(case suffix) Harmonic variants:
-n is added to words ending in a vowel. Final -a changes to -á-. Final -e changes to -é-.
-on is added to back-vowel words ending in a consonant
-en is added to unrounded front-vowel words ending in a consonant
-ön is added to rounded front-vowel words ending in a consonant

Hungarian case suffixes

Case	Back vowel a, á, o, ó, u, ú	Front vowel
Case	Back vowel a, á, o, ó, u, ú	unrounded e, é, i, í	rounded ö, ő, ü, ű
nominative	—
accusative	-t
accusative	-ot / -at	-et	-öt
dative	-nak	-nek
instrumental	-val	-vel
causal-final	-ért
translative	-vá	-vé
terminative	-ig
essive-formal	-ként
essive-modal	-ul	-ül
inessive	-ban	-ben
superessive	-n
superessive	-on	-en	-ön
adessive	-nál	-nél
illative	-ba	-be
sublative	-ra	-re
allative	-hoz	-hez	-höz
elative	-ból	-ből
delative	-ról	-ről
ablative	-tól	-től
Note for all endings: Stem-final -a/-e changes to -á-/-é-, respectively, except -ként. alma — almában, but almaként zene ― zenében, but zeneként

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Suffix

-on

(verb-forming suffix) Added to a stem ― often an onomatopoeia ― to form a verb, normally expressing an instantaneous action.
oson (“to sneak”) (the instantaneous element is not present here)

Usage notes

Harmonic variants:
-on is added to some back-vowel words
-an is added to back-vowel words
-en is added to front-vowel words

Derived terms

Hungarian verbs suffixed with -on

Etymology 3

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Suffix

-on

(deadjectival adverb suffix) Added to an adjective to create an adverb.
vak (“blind”) → vakon (“blindly”)
gazdagon (“rich”) → gazdagon (“abundantly, copiously”)

Usage notes

Harmonic variants:
-n is added to words ending in a vowel. Final -a changes to -á-. Final -e changes to -é-.
-an is added to most back-vowel words ending in a consonant
-on is added to some back-vowel words ending in a consonant
-en is added to front-vowel words ending in a consonant, as well as some front-vowel words ending in a vowel (see above).

Derived terms

Hungarian adverbs suffixed with -on

Etymology 4

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Suffix

-on

(personal suffix, chiefly dialectal or archaic) Indefinite third-person singular suffix (currently only in the imperative mood as part of -jon, formerly also occurring in the indicative).
ad (“to give”) → adjon (“he/she/it should give”)
van (“to be”) → vagyon (“he/she/it is, there is”) (in the standard language: van)

Usage notes

Harmonic variants:
-on is added to back-vowel words
-en is added to unrounded front-vowel words
-ön is added to rounded front-vowel words

Mohawk

Suffix

-on

forms perfective aspect, which require patient pronouns

References

Nora Deering; Helga H. Delisle (1976) Mohawk: A teaching grammar (preliminary version), Quebec: Manitou College, page 371-372

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

A new formation from words such as ion (“ion”), from Ancient Greek -ου (-ou), neuter of -ος (-os), from Proto-Indo-European *-os (creates nouns from verb stems).

Pronunciation 1

IPA^(key): /uːn/
Audio (file)
Rhymes: -uːn
Hyphenation: -on

Suffix

-on (definite singular neuter -onet, indefinite plural -on or -oner, definite plural -onene or -ona)

(physics, mathematics and biology) Used to form nouns denoting subatomic particles, quanta, molecular units, or substances; -on
proton, elektron, nøytron, boson, gluon ― proton, electron, neutron, boson, gluon
(chemistry, biology, genetics) Used to form nouns denoting certain organic compounds; -one, -on
aceton, testosteron, kodon ― acetone, testosterone, codone

Pronunciation 2

IPA^(key): /ɔn/
Audio (file)
Rhymes: -ɔn
Hyphenation: -on
Homophones: onn, ånd

Suffix

-on (definite singular neuter -onet or definite singular masculine -onen, indefinite plural -on or -oner, definite plural -onene or -ona)

(chemistry) Used to form nouns denoting chemical substances and industrial products; -on
radon, orlon, rayon ― radon, orlon, rayon

References

“-on” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).

Old Saxon

Alternative forms

-oian

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *-ōną.

Suffix

-on

(verbal suffix) used to form the infinitive of class 2 weak verbs (an alternative ending -oian is sometimes found instead of -on)
makon "to make"
haton "to hate"

Descendants

Middle Low German: -en
- Low German: -en

Polish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɔn/
Rhymes: -ɔn
Syllabification: on

Suffix

-on m

Forms masculine nouns.
‎kuć + ‎-on → ‎kujon

Declension

Inanimate delcension:

Declension of -on

	singular	plural
nominative	-on	-ony
genitive	-onu/-ona	-onów
dative	-onowi	-onom
accusative	-on	-ony
instrumental	-onem	-onami
locative	-onie	-onach
vocative	-onie	-ony

Animate delcension:

Declension of -on

	singular	plural
nominative	-on	-oni
genitive	-ona	-onów
dative	-onowi	-onom
accusative	-ona	-onów
instrumental	-onem	-onami
locative	-onie	-onach
vocative	-onie	-oni

Derived terms

Polish terms suffixed with -on

Spanish

Suffix

-on

Obsolete spelling of -ón

Swedish

Etymology

Most likely originally from nypon (“rosehip”) and smultron (“wild strawberry”) and then extended to other borrowed words with an original -a. Probably originally a plural suffix cognate to Gothic -𐍉𐌽𐌰 (-ōna) in e.g. 𐌰𐌿𐌲𐍉𐌽𐌰 (augōna, “eyes”), compare Swedish ögon.[1]

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˌɔn/

Suffix

-on n

Used in many names of berries and some fruits

Derived terms

fikon
hallon
hjortron
lingon
nypon
ollon
olvon
mjölon
plommon
päron
smultron

References

-on in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)

Anagrams

NO, no.

Welsh

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɔn/

Alternative forms

-ion

Suffix

-on

Pluralisation suffix
‎meddyg (“doctor”) + ‎-on → ‎meddygon (“doctors”)
‎lleidr (“thief”) + ‎-on → ‎lladron (“lladron”)
‎athro (“(male) teacher”) + ‎-on → ‎athrawon (“athrawon”)
Synonyms: -aid, -aint, -au, -ed, -edd, -en, -i, -iadau, -iaid, -iau, -ion, -od, -oedd, -ydd, -yr, -ys

Alternative forms

-son

Suffix

-on

(colloquial) verb suffix for the first-person plural preterite
(colloquial) verb suffix for the third-person plural preterite

Derived terms

Welsh terms suffixed with -on

[1] -on in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)

-on

English

Etymology

Suffix

Derived terms

Translations

Anagrams

Cebuano

Alternative forms

Etymology

Suffix

Derived terms

Danish

Suffix

Dutch

Pronunciation

Suffix

Synonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Finnish

Suffix

Anagrams

French

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Suffix

Descendants

Etymology 2

Suffix

Derived terms

Gothic

Romanization

Hungarian

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Suffix

Usage notes

See also

Etymology 2

Suffix

Usage notes

Derived terms

Etymology 3

Suffix

Usage notes

Derived terms

Etymology 4

Suffix

Usage notes

See also

Further reading

Mohawk

Suffix

References

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

Pronunciation 1

Suffix

Pronunciation 2

Suffix

References

Old Saxon

Alternative forms

Etymology

Suffix

Descendants

Polish

Pronunciation

Suffix

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

Spanish

Suffix

Swedish

Etymology

Pronunciation

Suffix

Derived terms