-ster
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Etymology
From Middle English -estere, -ester, from Old English -estre (“-ster”, feminine agent suffix), from Proto-West Germanic *-astrijā, of disputed origin. Cognate with Middle Low German -ester, Dutch -ster.
Suffix
-ster
- Someone who is, or who is associated with, or who does something specified.
- (humorous, sometimes offensive) A diminutive appended to a person's name.
- 1992, Russell Baker, "Observer; Pretty Good Read" (review of What It Takes by Richard Ben Cramer), New York Times, 25 Jul.,
- Cramer's exploration of the hearts, minds and souls of America's ambition-crazed Presidential candidates moves ahead at a pace that feels childishly frantic . . . . This is not just because it keeps referring to Senator Robert Dole as "the Bobster."
- 2023 April 21, John Crace, “Psycho goes down raging: the liberal wokerati finally get to Raab”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
- “Never better,” the Raabster spat back. “Just get on with it. What’s the score?”
- 1992, Russell Baker, "Observer; Pretty Good Read" (review of What It Takes by Richard Ben Cramer), New York Times, 25 Jul.,
Usage notes
- Relatively uncommon for agent nouns, compared to more usual -er and -or; primarily used for single-syllable words. Also informal, particularly in contemporary productive use – compare hipster, scenester, bankster; older terms such as barrister do not have this casual connotation, however.
- Sometimes used in proper names, e.g. Napster (file-sharing software), Blockster (Brandon Block, disc jockey)
- In older words, used as a suffix for jobs that were held by women, e.g., webster (“female webber, or weaver”), baxter (“female baker”), spinster (“female spinner”), brewster (“female brewer”).
Synonyms
Derived terms
Anagrams
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