-ier
-ier1 var. -yer, in agent-nouns based on native words and functioning as -ER1. Among the earliest exx. (XIII) are tiliere, extension with -ere of OE. tilia tiller, cultivator, bowiare bowyer, maker of bows; these may have served as models for other formations of various and sometimes obscure orig., e.g. brazier, clothier; collier, drovier, glazier, grazier, haulier, hosier, lawyer, sawyer.
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-ism , -ISM
-ISM. A noun-forming SUFFIX, three of whose uses relate to language: (1) Forming words for concepts, activities, and conditions: agrammatism, bi… -graph , -graph repr. F. -graphe, L. -graphus — Gr. -graphos, which was used (i) in the sense ‘written’, as autógraphos autograph, kheirógraphos chirograph, (… Back-formation , BACK-FORMATION. The creation of one WORD from another by removing rather than adding an element: laze from lazy; gruntled from disgruntled. Such word… Formation , for·ma·tion / fôrˈmāshən/ • n. 1. the action of forming or process of being formed: the formation of the Great Rift Valley. 2. a structure or arrange… Deimatic Behaviour , deimatic behaviour Intimidating behaviour in animals which serves to warn off potential predators. It may be bluff (e.g. the inflation of the lungs i… Hepatomegaly , hepatomegaly Enlargement of the liver as a result of congestion (e.g. in heart failure), inflammation or fatty infiltration (as in kwashiorkor).
hepa…
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