-dom

US, UK/-dəm/UK/-dɒm/US/-dɑm/

suffix

Forms nouns denoting the condition or state of the root word.

“Potterdom, stfdom”

OriginProto-Germanic *dōmaz ← Proto-Indo-European *dʰóh₁mos →
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Meanings

-dom1

suffix-dom (noun-forming suffix, countable and uncountable, plural -doms)

plural -doms

  1. countableuncountableForms nouns denoting the condition or state of the root word.

    boredom, freedom, martyrdom, stardom

  2. countableuncountableForms nouns denoting the domain or jurisdiction of the root word.

    Christendom, fiefdom, Hindudom, Islamdom, kingdom, Saxondom

  3. countableuncountableForms nouns — usually nonce words — denoting the set of all examples of the suffixed word.

    catdom, dogdom, furrydom, gothdom, wingdom

    2 more examples

    It is only the English language that has let the cabbage down – giving it, quite frankly, the ugliest name in all of veg-dom.

    2011 March 19, Caitlin Moran, The Times

    there always seemed to be one outrageous beauty: an angel who would have been forced into indentured topmodeldom had she been found on a Paris bus; or a wavy-lipped, chisel-chinned, almond-eyed boy-warrior out of the Iliad, as beautiful as humans come.

    1995, Isabel Fonseca, Bury Me Standing, Vintage, published 2007, page 74
  4. countableslanguncountablelifestyleForms nouns denoting the fandom of the suffixed word.

    Potterdom, stfdom

-dom2

suffix-dom (noun-forming suffix, countable and uncountable, plural -doms)

plural -doms

  1. countableuncountableBDSMForms uncountable nouns denoting a type of domination.
  2. countableuncountableBDSMForms countable nouns denoting a type of dominator.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
-hood-ness-ship

Origin

-dom · suffix

  1. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*dʰóh₁mos
  3. Proto-Germanic*dōmaz
  4. English-dom

From Middle English -dom, from Old English -dōm (“-dom: state, condition, power, authority, property, right, office, quality”, suffix), from Proto-West Germanic *-dōm, from Proto-Germanic *-dōmaz. Cognate with Scots -dom (“-dom”), North Frisian -dom (“-dom”), West Frisian -dom (“-dom”), Dutch -dom (“-dom”), Low German -dom (“-dom”), German -tum (“-dom”), Danish -dom (“-dom”) -dømme (“-dom”), Swedish -dom (“-dom”) -döme (“-dom”), Norwegian -dom (“-dom”), Icelandic -dómur (“-dom”), Norwegian Bokmål -dømme, Norwegian Nynorsk -døme. Same as Old English dōm (“doom, judgment, sentence, condemnation, ordeal, judicial sentence, decree, ordinance, law, custom; justice, equity; direction, ruling, governing, command; might, power, supremacy, majesty, glory, magnificence, splendor, reputation, honor, praise, dignity, authority; state, condition”). No relation to English domain or dominion. More at doom.

More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-West Germanic

Full word history & related roots →

-dom · suffix

  1. Middle Frenchdominant
  2. Englishdominantclip.
  3. English-dom

From dom, shortening of variously domination, dominance, or dominator.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Swedish -dom, -döme
  • -domdenoting a condition or state
  • -dömedenoting a domain or jurisdiction
Cite this entry
APA

-dom. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/-dom

MLA

“-dom.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/-dom. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “-dom,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/-dom.

Source: -dom on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.