-ette

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-ette¹

  • /-ɛt/

Sounds like -et

Where it comes from

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *-tós

Proto-Italic *-tosder.?

Latin -ittus

Old French -ettebor.

Middle English -ette

English -ette

Inherited from Middle English -ette, borrowed from Old French -ette, from Latin -ittus.

suffix

  1. diminutive, morpheme Used to form nouns meaning a smaller form of something. cigar + -ette → cigarette
  2. morpheme Used to form nouns meaning or implying the female equivalent of. bachelor + -ette → bachelorette
  3. morpheme Used to form nouns meaning an imitation or substitute of something. leather + -ette → leatherette
  4. Polari, morpheme Used to form nouns with a Polari context or an association with gay subculture. You may have vada'd one of our tiny bijou masterpiecettes, heartface.

Similar: mini-, micro-, nano-, -ee, -y, -icle, -cule, -ule, -ole, -a, -ess, -ine

-ette²

  • /-ɛt/

Sounds like -et

Where it comes from

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH-?

Proto-Germanic *brūnaz

Frankish *brūnbor.

Old French brun

Proto-Indo-European *-tós

Proto-Italic *-tosder.?

Late Latin -ittus

Old French -et

Old French brunet

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂

Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂

Proto-Italic *-ā

Latin -am

Old French -e

Old French brunete

French brunettebor.

English brunettebf.

English -ette

Back-formation from brunette.

suffix

  1. morpheme Used to form nouns and adjectives signifying a person, especially a woman, with the specified hair color. purple + -ette → purplette

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