Here you’ll find 21 Suffixes that start with B, organized from “-back” to “-byte”. These endings range from productive modern forms to historical or technical markers used in names, compounds, and jargon.
Suffixes that start with B are bound endings that change a word’s meaning or grammatical role. For example, -borne appears in place names while -byte reflects modern computing vocabulary.
Below you’ll find the table with Origin, Meaning and Example words.
Origin: Shows the historical language or period where a suffix comes from, so you can trace its background.
Meaning: Gives a short, plain description of the suffix’s function or typical sense to help you pick the correct use.
Example words: Lists two to four illustrative words showing how the suffix functions in context and how you might use it.
Suffixes that start with B
| Suffix | Origin (language/period) | Meaning (short phrase) | Example words |
|---|---|---|---|
| –born | Old English | born in; native of | london-born, american-born, stillborn |
| –borne | Old English | carried by; transmitted by | airborne, waterborne, disease-borne |
| –bound | Old English | headed toward; confined to | homebound, northbound, eastbound |
| –back | Old English | rear; return; reversal | payback, throwback, comeback |
| –boy | Middle English | young male or male in role | farmboy, bellboy, choirboy |
| –berry | Old English | small fruit; fruit-bearing plant | blackberry, blueberry, boysenberry |
| –bar | Old French/Germanic | bar; rod; instrument or unit | crowbar, handlebar, minibar |
| –band | Old English | band, strip, group | headband, waistband, armband |
| –box | Old English | box or container; device | matchbox, mailbox, inbox |
| –blast | Greek (blastos) | bud/cell or explosive attack | fibroblast, myeloblast, airblast |
| –bane | Old English | cause of death, ruin, or annoyance | wolfbane, dragon-bane, scapebane |
| –burg | Germanic | fortified town; place-name ending | hamburg, johannesburg, pittsburgh |
| –boro | Old English | borough; town (var.) | hillsboro, attleboro, greensboro |
| –borough | Old English | borough; town | scarborough, peterborough, edinburgh |
| –by | Old Norse | village, settlement (placename) | whitby, grimsby, derby |
| –berg | Germanic | mountain, hill; place-name ending | iceberg, heidelberg, bloomberg |
| –beck | Old Norse | stream, brook (placename) | troutbeck, beck, beckton |
| –bourne | Old English | stream; place by a stream | eastbourne, sherbourne, albourne |
| –bred | Old English | bred; raised | well-bred, homebred |
| –byte | Modern English (1960s) | data unit (computing) | kilobyte, megabyte, terabyte |
| –boat | Old English | type of boat or vessel | rowboat, speedboat, sailboat |
Descriptions
–born
Marks nativity or being born in a place; common in hyphenated compounds (london-born). Neutral register; some uses fossilized (stillborn). (OED)
–borne
Denotes carried or transmitted by something (airborne, disease-borne). Productive in technical and formal contexts (health, transport). (Merriam‑Webster)
–bound
Combining element for direction or limitation (homebound, northbound). Productive and widely used in speech and writing. (OED)
–back
Common compounding element meaning rear/return or reversal (payback, throwback). Highly productive and neutral register. (Merriam‑Webster)
–boy
Forms nouns denoting a male person in a role or age class; colloquial to neutral. Semi-productive but less used for new coinages. (OED)
–berry
Frequent in fruit names; productive for naming berries and garden cultivars. Neutral register. (OED)
–bar
Final element meaning a rod/device or commercial unit; common in tool names and loanwords. Productive in compounds. (OED)
–band
Used to name straps or groups (headband) and musical groups; productive and neutral register. (Merriam‑Webster)
–box
Combines with nouns to name containers or metaphorical receptacles; highly productive in compounds. (OED)
–blast
Scientific combining form for cells (fibroblast) and general sense ‘blast’ (airblast). Productive in biology and technical contexts. (Merriam‑Webster)
–bane
Historic/poetic suffix meaning “killer of” or bane of something; literary and archaic in tone (wolfbane). (OED)
–burg
Place-name suffix meaning town/fortress, common in Germanic-derived names; not productive for new coinages. (OED)
–boro
US variant of -borough used in town names; a placename element rather than a general productive suffix. (placename usage)
–borough
Traditional English placename ending ( borough ), now lexicalized in many town names; historic and not productive. (OED)
–by
Nordic placename element meaning “farm, village”; common in England’s north and east. Not productive for new words. (OED)
–berg
Germanic element meaning hill or mountain; appears in place names and loanwords (iceberg). Limited productivity in English. (OED)
–beck
Northern English placename element meaning stream; dialectal/placename use rather than general derivational suffix. (OED)
–bourne
Placename element meaning stream or brook (bourne/borne as placename); largely fossilized in toponyms. (OED)
–bred
Forms adjectives describing upbringing or origin (well-bred); semi-productive in descriptive compounds. Slightly formal register. (Merriam‑Webster)
–byte
Recent technical combining form for data units; highly productive in computing and engineering (kilobyte). (technical usage)
–boat
Productive compounding element naming types of boats; neutral register and common in everyday English. (OED)