-et

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-et suffix forming dims. from sbs., repr. (O)F. -et m., -ette fem., :- Rom. *-itto, *-itta, *-ētto, -a of unkn. (perh. non-L.) orig.; it occurs in many adoptions from French, as budget, gibbet, hatchet, mallet, turret, in most of which there is no longer any consciousness of a dim. force. For its use in adjs. see dulcet, russet. The combination in OF. of -et with -el produced -elet, for which see -LET.