Some adjectives are derived from other adjectives, or from nouns by adding ish to them; which termination when added to adjectives, imports diminution, or lessening the quality; as, “White, whitish;” i.e. somewhat white.  When added to nouns, it signifies similitude or tendency to a character; as, “Child, childish; thief, thievish.”

Some adjectives are formed from nouns or verbs by adding the termination able; and those adjectives signify capacity; as, “Answer, answerable; to change, changeable.”

4.  Nouns are derived from adjectives, sometimes by adding the termination ness; as, “White, whiteness; swift, swiftness;” sometimes by adding th or t, and making a small change in some of the letters; as, “Long, length; high, height.”

5.  Adverbs of quality are derived from adjectives, by adding ly, or changing le into ly; and denote the same quality as the adjectives from which they are derived; as, from “base,” comes “basely;” from “slow, slowly;” from “able, ably.”

There are so many other ways of deriving words from one another, that it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to enumerate them.  The primitive words of every language are very few; the derivatives form much the greater number.  A few more instances only can be given here.

Some nouns are derived from other nouns, by adding the terminations hood or head, ship, ery, wick, rick, dom, ian, ment, and age.

Nouns ending in hood or head, are such as signify character or qualities; as, “Manhood, knighthood, falsehood,” &c.

Nouns ending in ship, are those that signify office, employment, state, or condition; as, “Lordship, stewardship, partnership,” &c.  Some nouns in ship are derived from adjectives; as, “Hard, hardship,” &c.

Nouns which end in ery, signify action or habit; as, “Slavery, foolery, prudery,” &c.  Some nouns of this sort come from adjectives; as, “Brave, bravery,” &c.

Nouns ending in wick, rick, and dom, denote dominion, jurisdiction, or condition; as, “Bailiwick, bishopric, kingdom, dukedom, freedom,” &c.

Nouns which end in ian, are those that signify profession; as, “Physician, musician,” &c.  Those that end in ment and age, come generally from the French, and commonly signify the act or habit; as, “Commandment,” “usage.”

Some nouns ending in ard, are derived from verbs or adjectives, and denote character or habit; as, “Drunk, drunkard; dote, dotard.”

Some nouns have the form of diminutives; but these are not many.  They are formed by adding the terminations kin, ling, ing, ock, el, and the like; as, “Lamb, lambkin; goose, gosling; duck, duckling; hill, hillock; cock, cockerel,” &c.

OF PREPOSITIONS USED AS PREFIXES.

I shall conclude this lecture by presenting and explaining a list of Latin and Greek prepositions which are extensively used in English as prefixes.  By carefully studying their signification, you will be better qualified to understand the meaning of those words into the composition of which they enter, and of which they form a material part.