-al(e) [-al, -ale]

Morpheme

-al(e) [-al, -ale]

Type

suffix

Denotation

(1) adjective suffix denoting “of, like, related to, pertaining to”; (2) noun suffix forming a noun of action

Etymology

(1) Middle English -al, -el; French -al or Latin -ālis; (2) Middle English -aille; French -aille; Latin -ālia, -āle from -ālis; (3) French and Italian -ale; Latin -ālis

Evidence

animal, arrival, basal, bestowal, betrothal, biennale, boreal, chorale, corneal, cranial, denial, disposal, dual, finale, functional, -ial, lexical, lineal, locale, manorial, morale, musicale, neural, normale, palatial, proposal, radiale, regale, rental, reversal, several, spatial

See Also

-alis, -ismal, -el

Homographs

Al, Al(l) [All, Al], al-, -al, Ale, Ale, Ale, Ale