ISEE/SSAT Vocabulary Builder›Word parts›Suffixes›-ic
SuffixGreek
-ic
turns a noun into an adjective meaning related to or characterized by it
Greek -ikos marked relation: civic duties concern citizens, poetic lines concern poets, and periodic events follow periods.
Words built from it
- civic — related to a city, community, or citizenship
civ- (citizen) + -ic (related to) - poetic — related to poetry or having the qualities of poetry
poet- (maker, poet) + -ic (related to) - periodic — occurring in repeated cycles or intervals
period (cycle) + -ic (related to) - historical — related to the past or its study
histor(y) (recorded past) + -ic (related to) + -al (adjective)
Looks like it, but is not
- delicious — from Latin deliciosus 'delightful' through French, not the Greek -ic suffix
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More suffixes
- -en — turns an adjective or noun into a verb meaning to make or become that quality
- -ful — turns a noun into an adjective meaning full of or strongly marked by it
- -ify — turns a noun or adjective into a verb meaning make or cause to become
- -ism — turns an idea or practice into a noun naming a doctrine, system, practice, or characteristic behavior
- -ist — turns a field, practice, or belief into a noun for a person associated with it