Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun An abbreviation of
sterling . - noun A termination denoting occupation, as in maltster, gamester, spinster, songster, etc.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- A suffix denoting
the agent (originally a woman), especially a person who does somethingwith skill oras an occupation ; as in spinster (originally, a woman who spins), songster , baxter (= bakester ), youngster .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- suffix Someone who is, or who is
associated with, or who does somethingspecified . - suffix humorous A
diminutive appended to a person's name.
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
From Middle English -ster, -estere, from Old English -estre ("-ster", feminine agent suffix), from Proto-Germanic *-istrijōn, *-astrijōn, from Proto-Indo-European *-as-tar- (suffix). Cognate with Old High German -astria, Middle Low German -ester, Dutch -ster.
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Examples
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The "-ster" suffix hasn't done anyone any favors since Napster, after all, and it sounds so very dated.
The Washington Post: National, World & D.C. Area News and Headlines - The Washington Post Hayley Tsukayama 2011
marky commented on the word -ster
suffix // add to noun or noun(ish) wordies! ;)
April 28, 2009
Prolagus commented on the word -ster
Just found out that the suffix -ster was originally "used to refer to woman doing a job normally performed by a man" as the GNU Webster's 1913 Dictionary definition says:
http://www.wordorigins.org/index.php/site/comments/sex_neutral_terms/
This gives Webster itself a whole new meaning.
January 11, 2013
gangerh commented on the word -ster
Hah!
January 11, 2013