suffix
1Forming names denoting natives of a country.
- ‘Israelite’
- 1.1often derogatory Denoting followers of a movement, doctrine, etc.‘Luddite’
- ‘Thatcherite’
2Used in scientific and technical terms.
- 2.1Forming names of fossil organisms.
- ‘ammonite’
- 2.2Forming names of minerals.
- ‘graphite’
- 2.3Forming names of constituent parts of a body or organ.
- ‘somite’
- 2.4Forming names of explosives and other commercial products.‘dynamite’
- ‘vulcanite’
- 2.5Chemistry Forming names of salts or esters of acids ending in -ous.
- ‘sulphite’
- 2.1Forming names of fossil organisms.
Origin
From French -ite, via Latin -ita from Greek ītes.
suffix
1Forming adjectives such as composite, erudite.
2Forming nouns such as appetite.
3Forming verbs such as unite.
Pronunciation
Origin
From Latin -itus, past participle of verbs ending in -ere and -ire.
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