Word-building Suffixes
/έϝ/
The /έϝ/ suffix is a masculine agent suffix. When attached to a second declension noun, it denotes a person who works with that noun:
| ἱερό/, τό “sacrifice” (Ionic ἱρό/) | ἱερέϝ/ ὁ “priest” (Ionic ἱρέϝ/) |
| ἵππο/, ὁ “horse” | ἱππέϝ/ ὁ “horseman” |
For declining these nouns, see here [link].
/Jα/ is added to make the suffix feminine:
ἱέρεια, βασίλεια …
/Jα/
The /Jα/ marker is often added to adjective bases and participle stems to give them feminine gender. Note the following two features:
(i) Phonetic changes occur when J combines with a consonant. For instance, it changes place with ν by metathesis, as in μέλαν/Jα/ > μέλαινα, “dark,” and when combined with a dental stop the cluster produces σ, as in λιπ/όντ/Jα > λιπόνσα > λιποῦσα, “having left behind” (ν drops before σ in nouns and adjectives, and the vowel stretches).
(ii) The α of the /Jα/ marker is short in the nominative singular and accusative singular. For declining an adjective with the /Jα/ marker, see here [link].
/ία/
/ιδ/
/ιο/
(a few of them)
/ιον/, /ϊον/, and /ιοσ/
These suffixes (along with τερο/) form comparative adjectives. For more, see here [link].
/ματ/
The /ματ/ suffix is a resultative suffix. That is, when added to a verb base, it indicates the result of that verb. Nouns that use the /ματ/ suffix are neuter:
| ποιε/ “do, make” | ποιήματ/ τό “product” |
A clear resultative sense of the /ματ/ suffix may not always be evident:
| ὀπ/ “see” | ὄμματ/ τό “eye, sight” |
| χρα/ “need” | χρήματ/ τό “thing, issue, matter” (in the plural “property, money”) |
/τα/
The /τα/ suffix is an agent suffix. It is added to a base to denote a person who engages in the activity of that base. It creates a masculine noun of the first declension:
| κλεπ/ “steal” | κλέπτα/ ὁ “thief” |
| ποιε/ “do, make” | ποιητά/ ὁ “maker, content creator” |
| πόλι/ “city-state” | πολίτα/ ὁ “citizen” |
For declining these nouns, see here [link].
/τατο/
This suffix forms a superlative adjective. For more, see here [link].
/τέο/
When the suffix /τέο/ is added to a verb base, it creates an adjective that expresses necessity. The verbal sense of the adjective is passive: ποιε/τέο/ν > ποιητέον, “it must be done.” When the agent is expressed, it is in the dative: ἐμοὶ ποιητέον, “it must be done by me,” or better, “I must do it.”
/τερο/
This suffix (along with /ιον/, /ϊον/, and /ιοσ/) forms a comparative adjective. For more, see here [link].
/τηρ/
<a note on the folk etymology of πατηρ and μητηρ>
/το/
The suffix /το/ creates an adjective from a verb base and is essentially the same as /able and /ible in English. For instance, ἐξ/αἱρε/το/ς > ἐξαίρετος, “removable” (from αἱρε/ meaning “take” and ἐξ/ meaning “out”).
/τορ/
/τορ/ is a masculine agent suffix that is added to a verb base <example>.
/σι/
The suffix /σι/ is added to a verb base to create a noun that stress the process of the base’s action, like /ing can do in English. The noun it produces is feminine. For instance, λύ/σι/ς > λῦσις, “releasing,” and ποί/σι/ς > ποίησις, “making, creation, production.”
To decline these nouns, see here [link].
/σύνα/
<check that book…>
add patronymic ida/ ada/ and feminine id/
reading morphologically 