Denominative Nouns

429. Nouns of quality (all feminine) are made from adjectives, and occasionally from nouns, by adding to the stem the suffixes -τητ, -ιᾱ,
-συνᾱ. Abstract nouns often become concrete, being applied to special instances of the quality or action.

a. Suffix -τητ, nominative -της (cp. Latin -tāt, -tās).

b. Suffix -ιᾱ, nominative -ίᾱ or -ια, before which a final stem vowel is lost.

c. Suffix -συνᾱ, nominative -σύνη, before which a final consonant of the stem is lost.

430. Nouns denoting a person who has to do with something are made with the suffixes -ευ, -τᾱ, -τιδ (cp. § 405).

a. Suffix -ευ, nominative -εύς, masculine, some forming a feminine in -εια. A final stem vowel is lost before the suffix.

b. Sufix -τᾱ, nominative -της (masculine), some forming a feminine in -τιδ, nominative -τις. A final stem vowel before the ending is often changed in some way.

431. Several suffixes form nouns, many of which (but not all) have a diminutive meaning, or a caressing or a contemptuous tone; the end of the stem often suffers a change.

a. Suffix -ιο, nominative -ιον (neuter).

b. Suffix -ισκο, -ισκᾱ, nominative -ίσκος (mascasculine), -ίσκη (feminine).

c. Also the suffixes -άριο-ν, -ίδιο-ν, -ύλλιο-ν.

432. Words denoting a place are made with the suffixes -ιο, -ειο, -τηριο, -ων, often with some change at the end of the stem.

a. Suffix -ιο, -ειο, nominative -ιον, -ειον, neuter.

In other instances the force of the ending is vague.

b. Suffix -τηριο, nominative -τηριον, neuter, apparently made by adding -ιο to nouns in -τηρ (§ 405), which were later crowded out by the forms in -της.

Probably in some cases the starting-point was the verb, without thought of an intervening noun.

c. Suffix -ων, nominative -ών, masculine, with loss of a final stem vowel.

Some of these are enlarged by the ending -ιτιδ, nominative -ῖτις, feminine.

433. Nouns denoting descent (patronymics) are made from names of persons by adding -δᾱ or -ιδᾱ, nominative -δης or -ίδης, masculine, and -δ or -ιδ, nominative -(ά)ς or -ίς, feminine, sometimes with changes at the end of the stem.

a.

Nouns of this type caused -άδης and -άς to be taken as endings for making other names.

Names of this type caused -ιάδης to be taken as an ending to form other nouns.

b.

c. Many such words were ordinary proper names, not denoting descent: Εὐρῑπίδης, Bακχυλίδης, Ἀριστείδης.

d. These endings were probably at first less definite in meaning, like -ιο (§ 424), and that more general force appears in some words, especially in poetry.

434. Nouns (and adjectives) that mark a person as belonging to some people or city (gentiles) are made with the suffixes -ευ, -τᾱ, -ιδ, -τιδ. These are but special uses under headings already given.

a. Suffix -ευ (cp. § 430.a), fem. -ιδ (cp. § 433.b & d).

b. Suffix -τᾱ, fem. -τιδ (cp. § 430.b).

In several the ending seems to be -ώτης, -ῶτις: