Suffix · forms adjectives
Describes someone's underlying character: good-natured (kind, easygoing) versus ill-natured (bad-tempered).
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
-natured forms compound adjectives that describe the innate, fundamental character or disposition of a person — not just how they behave, but what they fundamentally are. Good-natured, ill-natured, sweet-natured, kind-natured — each compound suggests a deep, stable personality trait rather than a temporary mood. The suffix appears in literary descriptions and psychological characterization, often suggesting that the quality is natural and inherent rather than cultivated.
Adjective + natured.
This is not a productive rule you can apply freely: it is a closed set of fixed expressions. Learn them one by one as set phrases.
-natured
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"Good-natured" describes a stable character trait, not a temporary state. "She is in a good mood today" means she is happy right now. "She is good-natured" means she is consistently kind, cheerful, and pleasant — that is simply who she is. The distinction is between state (mood) and trait (nature).
"-tempered" describes how easily and intensely someone reacts emotionally, especially to provocation. "-natured" describes the fundamental quality of a person's character. A person can be "good-natured" (fundamentally kind) but "hot-tempered" (reacting with sudden anger). They are not synonyms.
A trick to remember it
-natured compounds suggest depth and permanence. When you describe someone as "good-natured," you imply that their kindness is not an act or a strategy — it is simply what they are. This is what makes -natured compounds so useful in character description: they describe essence, not performance. In contrast, describing behavior ("she was kind to me today") leaves open the question of whether this is character or calculation.
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
"She was good-natured but occasionally hot-tempered." Is this a contradiction?
Exercise 3 · Form the word
The suffix -natured describes someone's underlying character: good-natured (kind, easygoing) versus ill-natured (bad-tempered). In Spanish it usually maps to de naturaleza / de carácter.
"good" becomes "good-natured". It is a typical example of the -natured suffix.
Describes someone's emotional character: warmhearted (kind, affectionate) and coldhearted (unfeeling, unkind).
Describes someone's way of thinking: open-minded (accepting of new ideas) versus narrow-minded (closed off, intolerant).
Describes someone's emotional character: even-tempered (calm, steady) versus hot-tempered (quick to anger).
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