Wiktionary

-ese

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ese"

English

edit

Etymology

edit

From Middle English -eys, from Old French -eis, from Latin -ēnsis and, less often, Late Latin -iscus. Generally used in place of more common equivalent suffixes such as -er and -an on the model of equivalent terms in Italian and Portuguese, particularly for Italian, Portuguese African, and East Asian places first widely discussed in Portuguese and Latin.

Pronunciation

edit

Suffix

edit

-ese

  1. Used to form adjectives and nouns describing things and characteristics of a city, region, or country, such as the people and the language spoken by these people.
    Synonym: -ish
    Faroese, Maltese, Milanese, Parmese, Portuguese, Viennese; Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese; Beninese, Congolese, Togolese,
  2. Used to form nouns meaning the jargon or language used by a particular profession or being or in a particular context.
    Synonym: -speak
    ‎journal + ‎-ese → ‎journalese
    ‎legal + ‎-ese → ‎legalese
    ‎translation + ‎-ese → ‎translationese

Usage notes

edit

Generally speaking, nouns formed with the suffix -ese have no distinct plural form (e.g. two Viennese) and, with the definite article, are plural in itself and refer to an entire group (e.g. the Ravennese). They are also generally not used in the singular, as in "I am a Chinese"; instead, phrases like "I am a Chinese person" are used, where "Chinese" is an adjective. (In some British dialects, "a Chinese" can be used, but to refer to an ellipsis of Chinese meal, rather than a person.) This is not always the case, particularly for (non-native) English speakers from East Asia who use it to translate demonyms such as 日本人 and 中国人, but such countable uses may have nonstandard meanings. See also -ish, which "I am an English" is similarly considered improper.

Derived terms

edit
English terms suffixed with -ese
Adjectives and nouns describing characteristics of a region
Nouns denoting jargon

Translations

edit

Note: these translations are a guide only. For more precise translations, see individual words ending in -ese.

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ See e.g.
    “Annamese”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present. / “Annamese”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present. / “Annamese”, in Collins English Dictionary. / “Annamese”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.,
    “Chinese”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present. / “Chinese”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present. / “Chinese”, in Collins English Dictionary. / “Chinese”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.,
    “legalese”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present. / “legalese”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.,
    “Viennese”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present. / “Viennese”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present. / “Viennese”, in Collins English Dictionary. / “Viennese”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC., etc.

Anagrams

edit

German

edit

Etymology

edit

    Presumably from Italian -ese, Portuguese -ese and English -ese + -e.

    Pronunciation

    edit
    • IPA(key): [ˈeː.zə]
    • Audio:(file)

    Suffix

    edit

    -ese m (weak, genitive -esen, plural -esen, feminine -esin)

    2. Forms nouns indicating an inhabitant of a place.

    Usage notes

    edit
    • As in English, -ese is generally only used to form words on the model of Italian and Portuguese terms, with particular use in Italy, Portuguese Africa, and East Asia. Unlike English, the German terms only function as demonyms that can easily be discussed in the singular and many such terms are now obsolete, having been replaced by equivalents using -er.

    Declension

    edit
    Declension of -ese [masculine, weak]
    singular plural
    indef. def. noun def. noun
    nominative ein der -ese die -esen
    genitive eines des -esen der -esen
    dative einem dem -esen den -esen
    accusative einen den -esen die -esen

    Derived terms

    edit
    German terms suffixed with -ese

    Interlingua

    edit

    Etymology

    edit

    Borrowed from English -an, French -ain, Italian -ano, Portuguese -ano/Spanish -ano, all ultimately from Latin -ānus.

    Pronunciation

    edit

    Suffix

    edit
    The template Template:ia-suffix does not use the parameter(s): 
    1=n
2=a
    Please see Module:checkparams for help with this warning.

    -ese

    1. forms nouns and adjectives from nouns, denoting or pertaining to a native, citizen or inhabitant; -ese
      Synonyms: (noun) -ano, -ana, -ita, (adjective) -an
      ‎China (“China”) + ‎-ese → ‎chinese (“Chinese”)
      ‎Geneva (“Geneva”) + ‎-ese → ‎genevese (“Genevese”)
      ‎Francia (“France”) + ‎-ese → ‎francese (“French”)
    2. forms nouns and adjectives from nouns, denoting or pertaining to a language; -ese
      Synonyms: (noun) -ano, (adjective) -an
      ‎China (“China”) + ‎-ese → ‎chinese (“Chinese”)
      ‎Brooklyn (“Brooklyn”) + ‎-ese → ‎brooklynese (“Brooklynese, Brooklyn dialect”)

    Derived terms

    edit
    Interlingua terms suffixed with -ese

    References

    edit

    Italian

    edit

    Etymology

    edit

    Inherited from Latin -ēnsem (“originating in”), whence also Italian -ense.

    Pronunciation

    edit
    • IPA(key): /ˈe.ze/, (traditional) /ˈe.se/
    • Rhymes: -eze, (traditional) -ese
    • Hyphenation: -é‧se

    Suffix

    edit

    -ese m

    1. -ese (both senses); -er
      ‎Libano (“Lebanon”) + ‎-ese → ‎libanese (“Lebanese”)
      ‎Cina (“China”) + ‎-ese → ‎cinese (“Chinese”)
      ‎sinistra (“left”) + ‎-ese → ‎sinistrese (“left-wing political jargon”)
      ‎giornalista (“journalist”) + ‎-ese → ‎giornalistese (“journalese”)

    Derived terms

    edit
    Italian terms suffixed with -ese
    edit
    Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=-ese&oldid=82892377"