Suffix · forms verbs
From Latin "-ficare" (to make): turns nouns or adjectives into verbs meaning to make X or to become X. Magnify, rectify, petrify, glorify, vilify, mortify.
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
The suffix -fy (and its more common variant -ify) comes from Latin "-ficare" (to make) and converts nouns or adjectives into verbs meaning "to make something X". magnify (Latin magnus = great): to enlarge. rectify (Latin rectus = straight): to correct formally. petrify (Latin petra = stone): 1. to turn to stone; 2. to paralyse with fear (modern common use). Spanish: almost perfect correspondence: -ify = -ificar or -ficar.
Formal and literary register (C1-C2): petrify = to terrify, to leave paralysed with fear. mortify = to embarrass deeply: "I was mortified." glorify = to glorify: "Do not glorify violence." rectify = to correct formally (more formal than fix). vilify = to attack verbally, to defame: "She was vilified in the press." dignify = to honour with attention: "His response did not dignify the accusation."
"I was mortified" is one of the most common expressions for utter embarrassment. From Latin mors (death), in modern English = deeply embarrassed: "She was mortified when she slipped on stage." "petrified" in modern English almost always = paralysed with fear: "I was petrified of the exam." "vilify" = to attack verbally, to defame: "The media vilified him without evidence." More formal and specific than criticise or insult.
Latin root (noun or adjective) + ify or + fy. Always produces a verb.
Nouns of -ify verbs end in -ification: purify = purification, rectify = rectification, magnify = magnification, justify = justification. Extremely useful for academic vocabulary.
-fy / -ify/faɪ/ · rhymes with fly
Tap the button to hear how the ending sounds. Each word in the table has its own audio.
In modern English petrified almost always means terrified, paralysed with fear. The literal geological meaning is very rare in everyday use.
mortified in modern English = deeply embarrassed. The original religious sense is very unusual today.
All -ify verbs form nouns in -ification: rectify = rectification, purify = purification, justify = justification.
A trick to remember it
-ify/-fy = to make X or to become X. Key literary verbs: petrify (terrify/paralyse), mortify (deeply embarrass), glorify, rectify, vilify (defame), purify. All form nouns in -ification. I was mortified = I was utterly embarrassed.
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
She was petrified means...
Exercise 3 · Pick the right one
What is the noun form of justify?
The suffix -fy / -ify from Latin "-ficare" (to make): turns nouns or adjectives into verbs meaning to make X or to become X. Magnify, rectify, petrify, glorify, vilify, mortify. In Spanish it usually maps to -ficar / -ificar.
The ending -fy / -ify is pronounced /faɪ/ · rhymes with fly. For example, "magnify".
"magnus (great)" becomes "magnify". It is a typical example of the -fy / -ify suffix.
From Old English "-nian": turns adjectives into causative verbs meaning to make more X or to become X. Darken, enlighten, deepen, strengthen, heighten.
From Old French "-erie": forms nouns of activity, place, collective quality or state. Chivalry, trickery, wizardry, bravery, mockery.
From Latin "-itudo": forms abstract nouns of state or quality. Solitude, gratitude, magnitude, fortitude.
-tion, -ness, -ful, -ly, -able... every ending you need to understand thousands of words at once.