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-ous. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
-ous, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
-ous in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
-ous you have here. The definition of the word
-ous will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
-ous, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Middle English -ous, from Old French -ous/-os/-us, from Latin -ōsus (“full of”). Doublet of -ose and -wise in unstressed position.
Many English adjectives ending in -ous were taken from preexisting French or Latin adjectives that end in one of the above suffixes (e.g. envious corresponds directly to Old French envious which in turn corresponds directly to Latin invidiōsus). In addition, -ous (or the variant form -ious) has at times been attached to English nouns to form derived adjectives that lack precedents in French or Latin, such as slumberous from slumber or blizzardous from blizzard. It has also been used in some cases as a means of adapting adjectives borrowed from Latin that originally ended simply in -us, -a, -um (for example, obvious and previous are derived from Latin obvius and praevius, not *obviōsus or *praeviōsus).
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ous
- Used to form adjectives from nouns, to denote:
- possession of
- bulb + -ous → bulbous
- presence of a quality in any degree (typically abundance of)
- courage + -ous → courageous
- joy + -ous → joyous
- poison + -ous → poisonous
- riot + -ous → riotous
- relation or pertinence to
- aptonym + -ous → aptonymous
- arrhenotoky + -ous → arrhenotokous
- (chemistry) Used in chemical nomenclature to name chemical compounds in which a specified chemical element has a lower oxidation number than in the equivalent compound whose name ends in the suffix -ic. For example sulphuric acid (H2SO4) has more oxygen atoms per molecule than sulphurous acid (H2SO3). See Inorganic nomenclature.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
Note: Translations of English words ending in -ous do not necessarily end in the suffixes listed below.
chemical compounds in which a specified chemical element has a lower oxidation number
See also
Anagrams
Middle English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Old French -ous, -us, -eus, from Latin -ōsus.
Pronunciation
Suffix
-ous
- Forms adjectives from nouns or verbs, especially if of Romance origin.
Derived terms
Descendants
References
Old French
Suffix
-ous
- Alternative form of -us