| 释义 |
-ette, suffix
1. Forming diminutive ns., represents OF. -ette, the fem. form corresponding to the masc. -et: see -et1. In early Eng. use the Fr. -et and -ette (OF. -ete) were not clearly distinguished, and in 15th c. -ette is a mere variant spelling of -et; e.g. the OF. basinet occurs sometimes in Eng. as basinette. The older adoptions of Fr. words in -ette, so far as they survive, are now written with -et1; the spelling -ette belongs chiefly to words introduced since 17th c., as chemisette, cigarette, eprouvette, etiquette, pipette, serviette. During the present century a few words have been formed by the addition of -ette to Eng. ns.; most of these, as leaderette, sermonette, essayette, can scarcely be said to be in good use, though often met with in newspapers; wagonette, however, is well established. Formations of this kind are very common in the names given by manufacturers to materials intended as imitations of something else: one such word which has come into general use is leatherette.
1849J. Wilson in Blackw. Mag. LXVI. 19 This side of the glen..is known to be a descent but by the pretty little cataractettes playing at leap-frog. 1887Mod. Newspaper, Great sale of Brussellette carpets. Messrs. ―'s plushettes.
2. Used to denote a female, as in majorette, suffragette, usherette.
1921H. L. Mencken Amer. Lang. (ed. 2) vi. 187 The wide use of the suffix -ette in such terms as farmerette, conductorette,..usherette and huskerette, is due to the same effort to make one word do the work of two. 1939New Yorker 11 Nov., The girls employed to annoy visitors to some kind of Chamber of Commerce festival in Southern California will be called welcomettes. 1942in Amer. Speech (1943) XVIII. 147 Roosevelt Signs ‘Sailorette’ Bill... Usherette in the..movie theater... Chicago tries ‘Copettes’. 1970Women Speaking Apr. 5/2 Female teams are called Rockettes, Mercurettes, Atomettes. |