-yer

suffix

-yer

suffix

Etymology Inherited from Middle English -iere, probably from -ien (infinitival suffix) + -ere (agent noun); i.e. nouns in -ere built on verbs in -ien; possibly reinforced by Old French -ier once -ie- became a rising diphthong. More at -ier, -er.

Idiomatic, Morpheme, Rare, Usually Agent suffix, equivalent to -er, appended to some nouns (especially those ending in the letter "w" or "v").

law + -yer → lawyer (AmE /ˈlɔɪər/)
saw + -yer → sawyer /ˈsɔːjər/

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