-t meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

-t

suffix

Etymology

From Middle English -te (past tense ending), -t (past participle ending), from Old English -te, -de (first and third person past tense ending), -t, -ed, -od (past participle ending), from Proto-Germanic *-id- (past tense stem ending of class 1 weak verbs) and *-idaz (past participle ending of class 1 weak verbs). In some verbs, like lose/lost, the ‐t‐/‐t arose during the Middle English period from the devoicing of the earlier ‐d‐/‐d. This devoicing typically occurred after the suffix was syncopated from ‐ede and ‐ed, forcing the voiced alveolar stop directly against the stem’s final consonant. See -ed (Etymologies 1 and 2). Furthermore, in forms such as spelt and burnt, the participial -t is a later development during the Early Modern English period.

Morpheme Used to form the past tense and/or past participle of some verbs.

leap + -t → leapt
keep + -t → kept

2 more examples

dream + -t → dreamt
sleep + -t → slept

Derived terms: 297 terms
abasht, abolisht, absorpt, accomplisht, accurst, admonisht, addrest, advanc’t, ambusht, anguisht, annext, approacht, askt, astonisht, attacht, attackt, avoucht, banisht, bent, begat, begot, belcht, bereft, beset, besought, besprent, bethought, bit, bleacht, blemisht, blent, blest, blockt, blusht, bornt, bought, brandisht, brought, brusht, built, burnisht, burnt, bynempt, caught, ceast, checkt, cherisht, clasht, cleft, chirpt, clapt, clept, clipt, comprest, condenst, confest, contradistinguisht, crasht, crept, cropt, crusht, curst, danc’t, daunc’t, dealt, deckt, deduc’t, demolisht, denounc’t, deprest, developt, digrest, diminisht, dipt, disestablisht, dislik’t, dismist, dispenst, dispossest, disrelisht, distinguisht, dreamt, drest, drencht, dript, dropt, dwelt, eclipst, embellisht, embost, empoverisht, encampt, encreast, encroacht, enforc’t, enravisht, equipt, escapt, escap’t, experienc’t, exprest, extinguisht, felt, finisht, fixt, flapt, flasht, flipt, flourisht, flusht, frusht, forc’t, forwent, furbisht, furnisht, gallopt, garnisht, gaspt, gilt, glanc’t, gnasht, grac’t, gript, gusht, hackt, hatcht, heapt, heft, helpt, hitcht, hoist, husht, immesht, imprest, impresst, increast, infixt, inforc’t, intermixt, intrencht, invok’t, jilt, joint, kept, kickt, kilt, kist, knockt, languisht, lasht, lavisht, leant, learnt, left, lent, leapt, lickt, lik’t, lost, markt, maskt, matcht, meant, misspelt, misst, minisht, mixt, mockt, nourisht, opprest, outstretcht, parcht, pent, perisht, perplext, pierc’t, pisst, pitcht, plac’t, pluckt, polisht, possest, preacht, prefixt, prest, produc’t, progrest, provok’t, publisht, pult, puncht, punisht, pusht, quencht, rankt, rapt, raught, reacht, rebuilt, reduc’t, reestablisht, refresht, reft, regrest, releast, relisht, rent, replenisht, represt, repulst, revok’t, ript, rusht, scorcht, searcht, seduc’t, sent, skirmisht, slapt, slasht, slept, slipt, slit, smasht, smelt, snapt, snatcht, soakt, sought, spelt, spent, spilt, splasht, spoilt, stablisht, stept, stopt, stoopt, strest, stretcht, suckt, supprest, swept, talkt, tapt, tarnisht, taught, thought, tipt, toucht, transfixt, transgrest, turnt, unblest, unbuilt, unburnt, uncropt, uncurst, undevelopt, undipt, undreamt, undrest, unexprest, unimprest, unlearnt, unmaskt, unmixt, unopprest, unpunisht, unreprest, unspilt, unspoilt, unstopt, unstrest, unsupprest, unvanquisht, unworshipt, unwrapt, vanisht, vanquisht, varnisht, vext, voucht, walkt, washt, watcht, weft, went, wept, wisht, wist, wistest, worshipt, wrapt, wrought, yclept, yelpt

-t

suffix

Etymology From Middle English -t (e.g. aȝenst vs. aȝens (“against”)), likely resulting from -s + the, or various other words beginning with th-, t-.

Morpheme An excrescent ending appended to words suffixed with -s.

against, amidst, amongst, betwixt, whilst, twicet

Derived terms: -st

-t

suffix

Etymology From Middle English -t, from Old English -t, variant of -þ (“-th”) following spirant/fricative sounds, from Proto-Germanic *-þiz. More at -th.

Morpheme Used to form nouns from verbs of action; equivalent to -th.

arise + -t → arist
bow + -t → bout

4 more examples

drive + -t → drift
see + -t → sight
thieve + -t → theft
thrive + -t → thrift

-t

suffix

Etymology Suffix from Middle English -ten, from Old English -ettan, from Proto-West Germanic *-attjan, from Proto-Germanic *-atjaną.

Idiomatic, Morpheme Used to form verbs from nouns or adjectives (compare -ate, -ize), frequently having a causative force, or modified from an existing verb into a frequentative verb.

yeet (adress with ye), grunt, fidget, haunt (via French), elt (via Old Norse), belt (“to sing loudly”) (perhaps via West Frisian), jolt

-t

suffix

Morpheme, Slang Added to the end of words ending in ⟨d⟩, representing an AAVE pronunciation as /t/ rather than /d/, now generally with intensifying force.

African-American Vernacular

period + -t → periodt
good + -t → goodt

4 more examples

Lord + -t → Lordt
I'm at a very weird stage in my life where i feel worthless and like I'm ruining out of time but I'm also really young bUT I'm not doing anything I love or that makes me happy so I'm SADT2018 May 29, @chave1y, Twitter, archived from the original on 19 Jan 2024:
Day two of Lemon flavoured coffee 🥲💔 oh my godt2021 November 24, @NalediMOfficial, Twitter, archived from the original on 19 Jan 2024:
They ate this SO BADT2023 April 23, @mingiiki, Twitter, archived from the original on 19 Jan 2024:

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.