Word part · Anglo-Saxon suffix
The Anglo-Saxon suffix -er
Means: more (when you compare two).
At a glance
- Part
- -er
- Meaning
- more (when you compare two)
- Layer
- Anglo-Saxon: Short everyday words, compounds and the most common prefixes and suffixes.
It is spelled the same as the -er that names a person, so ask which job it is doing: taller compares, teacher names.
Example words
Read each word, then its sum: the parts that build it, and what they mean together.
Colors:prefixroot or basesuffix
- tall (root or base)+er (suffix)→taller
more tall
- small (root or base)+er (suffix)→smaller
more small
- fast (root or base)+er (suffix)→faster
more fast
- soft (root or base)+er (suffix)→softer
more soft
- wide (root or base)+er (suffix)→wider
more wide
wide + er: drop the e → wider
- nice (root or base)+er (suffix)→nicer
more nice
nice + er: drop the e → nicer
- big (root or base)+er (suffix)→bigger
more big
big + er: double the last letter → bigger
- thin (root or base)+er (suffix)→thinner
more thin
thin + er: double the last letter → thinner
- cloud (root or base)+y (suffix)+er (suffix)→cloudier
more cloudy
cloud + y + er: change y to i → cloudier
- dark (root or base)+er (suffix)→darker
more dark
- kind (root or base)+er (suffix)→kinder
more kind
Original word lists and meanings written by Literacy Trail.
Taught alongside
Parts that share a lesson with -er.
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