| The American Heritage® Book of English Usage. |
A Practical and Authoritative Guide to Contemporary English. 1996.
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8. Word Formation: Plurals, Possessives, Affixes, and Compounds
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| § 35. -ness |
| The suffix -ness, which goes back to Old English, continues to have a productive life. It commonly attaches to adjectives in order to form abstract nouns, such as artfulness and destructiveness. The suffix -ness also forms nouns from adjectives made of participles, such as contentedness and willingness. It can also form nouns from compound adjectives, such as kindheartedness and straightforwardness. The suffix -ness can even be used with phrases: matter-of-factness. | 1 |
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| The American Heritage® Book of English Usage. Copyright © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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