suffixfirst/second-declension suffix
-gnus
-gnus (feminine -gna, neuter -gnum)
Classical[nʊs]Ecclesiastical[ɲus]
Meaning
- morphemesuffixsuffix forming adjectives denoting origin. born, originated from
bene (“well”) + -gnus → benignus (“kind, generous”)
male (“badly”) + -gnus → malignus (“ungenerous, grudging”)
Origins
From a combining form *-ǵn(h₁)-os from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to produce, to beget, to give birth”), whence Latin gignō (“give birth”). Compare -genus, which was reformed from other forms.