-some
/səm/
-some suffix: characterized by some specific condition or quality, usually to a considerable degree.
Suffix (1)
-some (adjective-forming suffix, comparative more -some, superlative most -some)
- Characterized by some specific condition or quality, usually to a considerable degree.
- Elsewhere the blingsome silver-beveled mirrors, butterfly and lotus blossom motifs, and the occasional chaise longue make the opulence a touch on the show-off side for me, but the expenses were obviously 5-star and it's undoubtedly bespoke.2012, Tom Sandham, World's Best Cocktails
- Used to form adverbs from adjectives.
- I'll try and do it real quietsome.
Suffix (2)
-some (noun-forming suffix, plural -somes)
- Denoting a group with a certain number of members.
Suffix (3)
IPA/soʊm/
-some (noun-forming suffix, plural -somes)
Suffix (4)
-some
- Plus some indeterminate fraction not amounting to the next higher round number or significant digit; and change; -odd.
- twenty-some identifiable factors affecting the outcome
- one-hundred-and-fifty-some spectators in the bleachers
Forms of -some
| comparative | more -some |
|---|---|
| superlative | most -some |
| plural | -somes |
Origin of -some
From Middle English -som, -sum, from Old English -sum (“same as; -some”), from Proto-West Germanic *-sam, from Proto-Germanic *-samaz, from Proto-Germanic *samaz (“same”). Akin to Saterland Frisian -soam (“-some”), West Frisian -sum (“-some”), Dutch -zaam (“-some”), German Low German -saam (“-some”), German -sam (“-some”), Danish -som, Swedish -sam, Icelandic -samur (“-some”), Gothic -𐍃𐌰𐌼𐍃 (-sams), -𐍃𐌰𐌼𐌰 (-sama). Cognate with Albanian -shëm (“-some”). More at same, some.
From Middle English -som, from a specialized use of Old English sum (“some, one”) coming after a genitive plural (e.g. hē wæs fēowertiga sum --"he was one of forty", literally "he was forties' some[one]"; sixa sum --"one of six, sixsome").
Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek σῶμα (sôma, “body”). For the "chromosome" sense, by analogy with chromosome.
Questions about -some
- What does -some mean?
- -some means characterized by some specific condition or quality, usually to a considerable degree.
- What part of speech is -some?
- -some is a suffix.
- How do you pronounce -some?
- -some is pronounced /səm/.
Words near -some in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: -some (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl--some.wav.
Cite this entry: “-some.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/-some. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.