-Al
/əl/ or /æl/noun
A suffix used to form adjectives meaning “relating to” or “characterized by,” and nouns denoting substances or processes.
Did you know?The adjectival suffix -al comes from Latin -ālis, a highly productive ending that transformed nouns into descriptors of belonging or relationship, as in mortālis, “subject to death.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*-lo-
“A suffix used to form adjectives expressing relation or characteristic; its deeper origin is debated.”
Classical Latin
Latin
-ālis
“An adjectival suffix meaning “relating to” or “belonging to.””
Classical Latin
Latin
mortālis
“Mortal; subject to death, from mors, “death,” plus -ālis.”
Old French
Old French
-al
“A productive adjective-forming suffix inherited from Latin through Romance.”
Middle English
English
-al
“A suffix used in learned words borrowed from French and Latin.”
Modern English
English
-al
“A productive suffix forming adjectives such as natural, ritual, celestial, and personal.”