-ence

noun suffix

1
: action or process
emergence
: instance of an action or process
reference
2
: quality or state
despondence

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin -entia, from -ent-, -ens, present participle ending + -ia -y entry 2

Dictionary Entries Near -ence

encave

-ence

enceinte

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“-ence.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/-ence. Accessed 8 Oct. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

-ence

noun suffix
ən(t)s,
ᵊn(t)s
1
: action or process
emergence
: instance of an action or process
reference
2
: quality or state
existence
Etymology

derived from Latin -entia "action or process"

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

Every Letter Is Silent, Sometimes: A-Z List of Examples

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

More Commonly Misspelled Words
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

Weird Words for Autumn Time

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
petit-fours
Name That Dessert! Hope you’ve saved room for some sweet vocabulary.