These endings make nouns, words that name a thing, a quality or a person. Add -ity to able and you get ability. Add -tion to act and you get action. Add -ist to art and you get artist, a person who makes art.
Key idea
-ity, -ty = the quality of being. -tion, -sion = the act or result of. -ance, -ence, -ancy, -ency = the state or act of. -ism = a belief or practice; -ist = a person who.
Many list words are nouns made from adjectives or verbs you may know. brevity is the quality of being brief. veracity is the quality of being truthful (ver, true). cessation is the act of ceasing. credence is the state of believing. A hedonist is a person who lives for pleasure (hedon, pleasure).
The parts and their words
Words taken apart
| Word and meaning | Parts, and what they say |
|---|---|
| brevity shortness of time or of words | brev short + -ity the quality of being → “the quality of being short” |
| veracity truthfulness; accuracy | ver true + -acity the quality of being → “the quality of being true” |
| fidelity faithfulness and loyalty; also, accuracy | fid faith + -elity the quality of being → “the quality of being faithful” |
| cessation a stop; an end | cess stop + -ation the act of → “the act of stopping” |
| conviction a firmly held belief; also, a guilty verdict | con- completely + vict conquer + -ion the result of → “a being won over (to a belief)” |
| credence belief or acceptance that something is true | cred believe + -ence the state of → “the state of believing” |
| clemency mercy, especially in punishing | clem mild + -ency the state of → “the state of being mild (mercy)” |
| hedonist a person who lives for pleasure | hedon pleasure + -ist a person who → “a person who lives for pleasure” |
Worked example: Noun or adjective?
Which word fits: “No one doubted the ______ of her story.” Choices: veracious, veracity.
- After the and before of, the sentence needs a noun.
- -ity makes nouns: veracity, “truthfulness.”
- veracious (with -ous) is the adjective, “truthful.”
Answer: veracity
Meet the word
Common mistake
Using the adjective where a noun belongs, or the other way around. veracity (noun, truthfulness) is not veracious (adjective, truthful); credence (noun) is not credible (adjective). The ending decides how the word fits the sentence.