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in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
From Middle English -ant , -aunt , partly from Old French -ant , from Latin -āns ; and partly (in adjectival derivations) continuing Middle English -ant , a variant of -and , -end , from Old English -ende ( present participle ending ) , see -and .
Suffix
-ant
( now sciences , chiefly medicine ) The agent noun derived from verb .
serve → servant
An adjective corresponding to a noun in -ance , having the sense of "exhibiting (the condition or process described by the noun)".
An adjective derived from a verb, having the senses of: (a) "doing (the verbal action)", and/or (b) "prone /tending to do (the verbal action)".
ascend → ascendant
err → errant .
Alternative form of -and
blatant , blicant ; flippant , old-farrant
Usage notes
Many words in -ant were not actually coined in English but rather borrowed directly from Old French, Middle French or Modern French.
Derived terms
Anagrams
Dutch
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ant m (plural -anten , feminine -ante )
appended to the stem of a verb, it yields a noun which signifies the subject who performs the action of that verb (see agent noun )
Derived terms
French
Etymology
Inherited from Old French -ant , from Latin -antem , -entem . Compare Italian -ante , -ente , Spanish -ante , -ente , -iente .
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ant ( invariable )
-ing ; suffix denoting the gerund and present participle of a verb
jouer ( “ to play ” ) + -ant → jouant ( “ playing ” )
Suffix
-ant (feminine -ante , masculine plural -ants , feminine plural -antes )
-ant , -ing ; forms adjectives out of verbs
( rare ) forms adjectives from words other than verbs
abracadabra + -ant → abracadabrant
Suffix
-ant m (plural -ants , feminine -ante )
-er ; forms nouns out of verbs
Usage notes
French present participles are used, chiefly in literary style, to replace relative clauses . In this case they are not inflected for number and gender: une femme aimant ses enfants ( “ a woman loving her children ” ) , equivalent to une femme qui aime ses enfants ( “ a woman who loves her children ” ) .
Some present participles can also be used as actual adjectives. In this case they are inflected: une femme aimante ( “ a loving/caring woman ” ) . This adjectival use is lexicalised , however, which means that it is common only for certain participles, not all (unlike English).
German
Etymology
From Middle High German -ant , from Old French -ant ; and also directly from Latin -antis , -ans .
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ant m (weak , genitive -anten , plural -anten , feminine -antin )
Forms agent nouns, mostly from verbs of Romance or Latin origin.
liefern ( “ to supply ” ) + -ant → Lieferant ( “ supplier ” )
Usage notes
Declension
Derived terms
-ans ( rare, unproductive synonym from the same source )
Further reading
“-ant ” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
“-ant ” in Duden online
Hungarian
Etymology
From -a- ( linking vowel ) + -n ( instantaneous suffix ) + -t ( causative suffix ) .[ 1]
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ant
( instantaneous suffix ) Added to a stem - often an onomatopoeia - to form a verb expressing an instantaneous action.
pillant ( “ to glance ” )
Usage notes
( instantaneous suffix ) Variants:
-ant is added to back-vowel words
-ent is added to front-vowel words
Derived terms
See also
References
Latin
Etymology
From Proto-Italic *-ānt , from Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yónti .
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ant
third-person plural present active indicative of -ō ( first conjugation )
Descendants
Old Galician-Portuguese: -an
Spanish: -an
Middle French
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Suffix
-ant
used to form the present participle of verbs
Old French
Etymology
From Latin -āns , -ēns .
Suffix
-ant
used to form the present participle of verbs
Descendants
Polish
Etymology
Borrowed from French -ant , from Old French -ant , from Latin -āns , -ēns . Doublet of -ający ( for -āns ) , -ejący ( for -ēns ) .
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ant m pers
-ant ( agent noun derived from verb )
kurs + -ant → kursant
Declension
Derived terms
Further reading
-ant in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Welsh
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
Cognate with Cornish -ans .
Suffix
-ant m (plural -annau )
show the action of a verb or its result , -tion , -ment
maddau ( “ to forgive ” ) + -ant → maddeuant ( “ forgiveness ” )
Etymology 2
Suffix
-ant
( literary ) verb suffix for the third-person plural present indicative /future
Derived terms