-y
See also: Appendix:Variations of "y"
English
Alternative forms
- -e, -ey, -ie
- -i- (when followed by another suffix)
Etymology 1
From Middle English -y, -i, from Old English -iġ (“-y, -ic”, suffix), from Proto-Germanic *-īgaz (“-y, -ic”), from Proto-Indo-European *-kos, *-ikos, *-iḱos (“-y, -ic”). Cognate with Scots -ie (“-y”), West Frisian -ich (“-y”), Dutch -ig (“-y”), Low German -ig (“-y”), German -ig (“-y”), Swedish -ig (“-y”), Gothic -𐌹𐌲𐍃 (-igs, “-y”), Latin -icus (“-y, -ic”), Ancient Greek -ικός (-ikós), Sanskrit -इक (-ika). Doublet of -ac and -ic.
Suffix
-y
- Added to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives meaning “having the quality of”, either “involving the referent” or “analogous to it”.
- mess + -y → messy
- mouse + -y → mousy
- blue + -y → bluey
- clay + -y → clayey
- 2003, Cory Doctorow, Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, Macmillan, →ISBN:
- Tim keeps trying to make it all more impressionistic, less computer-y.
- Added to verbs to form adjectives meaning "inclined to".
- run + -y → runny
- stick + -y → sticky
- fiddle + -y → fiddly
Usage notes
- This suffix is very productive and can be added to almost any word. When the resulting word is not perceived to be an established or formal word (but rather a nonce word or a casualism), a hyphen is often used before the suffix (sandcastle → sandcastle-y). A few long-established words ending with this suffix have distinctive spellings, such as wintry and fiery, which English learners might misspell as *wintery and *firey.
Synonyms
- (form “having quality of” adjectives, denoting “involving the referent”): -al, -an, -ial, -ian, -ly, -ous
- (form “having quality of” adjectives, denoting “analogous to the referent”): -esque, -ish, -like, -ly, -oid
Antonyms
- (form “having quality of” adjectives): -less
Translations
Note: translations of English words ending in -y do not necessarily end in the suffixes listed below.
having the quality of
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inclined to
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
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Etymology 2
Cognate with Scots -ie, being inherited directly from the same source Middle English -ie, -i, from Old English -iġ (“-ie, -y”, diminutive suffix), from Proto-West Germanic *-ij-, *-j- (diminutive suffix). Compare Dutch -je (diminutive suffix), German Low German -je (diminutive suffix).
Alternative forms
- -ie, -ey, -ee
Suffix
-y
- Forming diminutive nouns.
- granny, pinny, tummy
- Forming familiar names, pet names, nicknames and terms of endearment.
- Billy, Jonesy, Johnny, lovey
Synonyms
- (diminutive): mini-, micro-, nano-, -ette, -ee, -icle/-cule/-ule/-ole
Translations
Note: translations of English words ending in -y do not necessarily end in the suffixes listed below.
forming diminutive nouns
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forming familiar names
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Etymology 3
From Middle English -y, -ie, -ee, -e, from Anglo-Norman and Middle French -ie and -é, from Latin -ia, -ium, -tās, Ancient Greek -ίᾱ (-íā), -ειᾰ (-eia), -ιον (-ion).Cognate (as far as Latin -ia is involved) with German -ei and Dutch -ij.
Suffix
-y
- Forming abstract nouns denoting a state, condition, or quality.
- modest + -y → modesty
- honest + -y → honesty
- -nym + -y → -nymy
- as in toponym + -y → toponymy
- -logue + -y → -logy
- as in analogue + -y → analogy
- Used in the name of some locations which end in -ia in Latin.
- Italy, Germany, Saxony, Hungary, Sicily, Lombardy, Tuscany, Albany, Brittany, Gascony, Burgundy, Picardy, Normandy, Romandy, Savoy, Muscovy, Tartary, Arcady, Thessaly, Troy, Turkey.
Derived terms
- -ery
Translations
Note: translations of English words ending in -y do not necessarily end in the suffixes listed below.
forming abstract nouns
|
Derived terms
English terms suffixed with -y
Afar
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /-j/
Clitic
-y
- Used to form an interrogative copulative sentence: is it?
- Qafár af macáy? ― What is the Afar language?
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /-j/
Clitic
-y
- Used to join together noun phrases: and, also
- Saytun Qhuraan kee kay maqnah tarjamaty Qafar afal tani [The clear Qur'an and its explanation translated into the Afar language], Suurat Al-Faatica, verse 1:
- Fulte Racmattaay, Gunê Racmattale Yallih Migaaqal Qimbisa.
- I begin in the name of God, who gives mercy and surpasses mercy.
-
Usage notes
- When following a short vowel, -y lengthens that vowel:
- gaalá (“camel”) + -y → gaaláay (“and the camels”)
References
- E. M. Parker; R. J. Hayward (1985) An Afar-English-French dictionary (with Grammatical Notes in English), University of London, →ISBN, pages 282; 292
- Mohamed Hassan Kamil (2015) L’afar: description grammaticale d’une langue couchitique (Djibouti, Erythrée et Ethiopie), Paris: Université Sorbonne Paris Cité (doctoral thesis), page 447
Asturian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /i/
Pronoun
-y
- him, she, it (third-person singular indirect pronoun)
- Da-y pan
- Give him bread
Usage notes
It is always spelled with the hyphen, unlike other pronouns in the language.
Related terms
- -yos, -ys (third-person plural indirect pronoun)
Czech
Suffix
-y
- -ly: from adjectives forms adverbs
- logický + -y → logicky
Derived terms
Czech terms suffixed with -y
Further reading
- -y in Slovník afixů užívaných v češtině, 2017
Egyptian
Pronunciation
- (modern Egyptological) IPA(key): /iː/
- Conventional anglicization: -y
Suffix
|
- (Old Egyptian, Middle Egyptian) Forms the plural imperative of verbs, particularly weak verbs.
- (Old Egyptian, Middle Egyptian) Optionally used to form the subjunctive of weak verbs.
Usage notes
The plural imperative can also appear without this suffix, in a form identical to the singular imperative.
Suffix
|
- Forms agent nouns from verbs.
Suffix
|
- (Old Egyptian, Middle Egyptian) Optionally marks the masculine imperfective active participle, intervening between the stem and the gender/number endings.
Alternative forms
Alternative hieroglyphic writings of -y
| ||
| -j |
Suffix
|
- (Old Egyptian, Middle Egyptian) Optionally marks the masculine singular perfective passive participle of strong verbs, intervening between the stem and the gender/number endings.
Alternative forms
Alternative hieroglyphic writings of -y
|
| ||||
| -w | -w |
Suffix
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- (Old Egyptian, Middle Egyptian) Optionally marks the perfective passive participle of weak verbs, intervening between the stem and the gender/number endings.
- (Old Egyptian, Middle Egyptian) Optionally marks the perfective relative form of weak verbs, intervening between the stem and the gender/number endings.
- (Late Egyptian) Marks the perfective passive participle of mostly third-weak transitive verbs, following the stem.
- (Late Egyptian) Occasionally marks the perfective active participle of mostly third-weak transitive verbs, following the stem.
Alternative forms
Alternative hieroglyphic writings of -y
|
| ||||||||
| -yꜣ | -yt | ||||||||
| Late Egyptian | Late Egyptian |
Suffix
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- (Old Egyptian, Middle Egyptian) Rarely marks the imperfective relative form of all verbs, intervening between the stem and the gender/number endings.
Alternative forms
Alternative hieroglyphic writings of -y
|
| ||||
| -w | -w |
References
- James P[eter] Allen (2010) Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, 354 page 328–329, 354.
- Junge, Friedrich (2005) Late Egyptian Grammar: An Introduction, second English edition, Oxford: Griffith Institute, page 66
Finnish
Suffix
-y
- Front vowel variant of -u.
Declension
| Inflection of -y (Kotus type 1/valo, no gradation) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | -y | -yt | |
| genitive | -yn | -yjen | |
| partitive | -yä | -yjä | |
| illative | -yyn | -yihin | |
| singular | plural | ||
| nominative | -y | -yt | |
| accusative | nom. | -y | -yt |
| gen. | -yn | ||
| genitive | -yn | -yjen | |
| partitive | -yä | -yjä | |
| inessive | -yssä | -yissä | |
| elative | -ystä | -yistä | |
| illative | -yyn | -yihin | |
| adessive | -yllä | -yillä | |
| ablative | -yltä | -yiltä | |
| allative | -ylle | -yille | |
| essive | -ynä | -yinä | |
| translative | -yksi | -yiksi | |
| instructive | — | -yin | |
| abessive | -yttä | -yittä | |
| comitative | — | -yineen | |
| Possessive forms of -y (type valo) | ||
|---|---|---|
| possessor | singular | plural |
| 1st person | -yni | -ymme |
| 2nd person | -ysi | -ynne |
| 3rd person | -ynsä | |
| Inflection of -y (Kotus type 2/palvelu, no gradation) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | -y | -yt | |
| genitive | -yn | -yjen -yiden -yitten | |
| partitive | -yä | -yjä -yitä | |
| illative | -yyn | -yihin | |
| singular | plural | ||
| nominative | -y | -yt | |
| accusative | nom. | -y | -yt |
| gen. | -yn | ||
| genitive | -yn | -yjen -yiden -yitten | |
| partitive | -yä | -yjä -yitä | |
| inessive | -yssä | -yissä | |
| elative | -ystä | -yistä | |
| illative | -yyn | -yihin | |
| adessive | -yllä | -yillä | |
| ablative | -yltä | -yiltä | |
| allative | -ylle | -yille | |
| essive | -ynä | -yinä | |
| translative | -yksi | -yiksi | |
| instructive | — | -yin | |
| abessive | -yttä | -yittä | |
| comitative | — | -yineen | |
| Possessive forms of -y (type palvelu) | ||
|---|---|---|
| possessor | singular | plural |
| 1st person | -yni | -ymme |
| 2nd person | -ysi | -ynne |
| 3rd person | -ynsä | |
Lower Sorbian
Suffix
-y
- Alternative form of -i (used after “hard” consonants).
Middle English
Etymology 1
From Old English -iġ, from Proto-West Germanic *-g, from Proto-Germanic *-gaz, from Proto-Indo-European *-kos. Doublet of -ik.
Alternative forms
- -e, -eg, -ege, -ey, -i, -ich, -iche, -ie, -ig, -ige, -iȝ, -iȝe, -ik, -ike, -ye
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /-iː/
Suffix
-y
- Designates an adjective, in many cases formed by being appended to a noun.
Derived terms
Middle English terms suffixed with -y
Descendants
- English: -y, -ie, -ey
- Scots: -ie, -y
References
- “-i,, suf.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 20 June 2018.
- “-i(e, suf.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 20 June 2018.
Suffix
-y
- Alternative form of -yf
Suffix
-y
- Alternative form of -ie
Polish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɨ/
- Rhymes: -ɨ
- Syllabification: y
Suffix
-y
- nominative plural ending of some masculine nouns.
- vocative plural ending of some masculine nouns.
- genitive singular ending of some feminine nouns.
- nominative plural ending of some feminine nouns.
- accusative plural ending of some feminine nouns.
- vocative plural ending of some feminine nouns.
- personal, animate, and inanimate masculine nominative singular ending of some adjectives.
- personal, animate, and inanimate masculine vocative singular ending of some adjectives.
- inanimate masculine accusative singular ending of some adjectives.
- personal masculine nominative plural ending of some adjectives.
- personal masculine vocative plural ending of some adjectives.
Derived terms
Polish terms suffixed with -y
Further reading
- -y in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
- -y in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Quechua
Suffix
-y
- Infinitive marker.
- mikhuy (“to eat”)
- Nominalizes verbs. The act of doing something. "-ing."
- pampachay (“pardon, remission”)
- Indicates first-person singular possessive.
- mikhuna (“food”) → mikhunay (“my food”)
- Conjugative suffix for the second-person imperative mood.
- Uyariway! ("(You) listen to me!")
Scots
Suffix
-y
- Alternative form of -ie
References
- “-y, suff.” in the Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries.