Etymology Explorer › German

Where does “-nis” come from?

-nis (German) comes from Middle High German -nisse, from Old High German -nissī, from Proto-West Germanic -nassī, from Proto-Germanic -inassuz, from Proto-West Germanic -ī, from Proto-Germanic -į̄, from Proto-Indo-European -íh₂, from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ — Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...

-nis (German): A suffix for deriving nouns from verbs or...

Definitions

  1. A suffix for deriving nouns from verbs or...

Ancestry of “-nis”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High German-nisse—
2Old High German-nissī—
3Proto-West Germanic-nassīUsed to form abstract nouns, usually from...
4Proto-Germanic-inassuz-ness
5Proto-West Germanic-ī-ness, -th
6Proto-Germanic-į̄-th
7Proto-Indo-European-íh₂—
8Proto-Indo-European-h₂Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...

Words derived from “-nis”

  • geheimnisvoll
  • Ausreiseerlaubnis
  • Zerwürfnis
  • Glaubensbekenntnis
  • Erlaubnis
  • Erkenntnis
  • ereignisreich
  • Ereignis
  • Ereignishorizont
  • Bekenntnis
  • Geständnis
  • -nisse
  • Ärgernis
  • Erkenntnistheorie
  • Bankgeheimnis
  • Bedürfnis
  • Geheimnis
  • Lippenbekenntnis
  • Sonnenfinsternis
  • Finsternis
  • Mondfinsternis
  • erlebnisreich
  • Erlebnis
  • Geheimnis
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ →