-ie

alternative -ee · alternative -ey

1. Forming diminutive or affectionate forms of nouns or names.

   dear → dearie

   5 more examples

   “Polly, I wish you ’d let me call you Marie,” said Fanny one day, as they were shopping together. ¶ “You may call me Mary, if you like; but I won’t have any ie put on to my name. I’m Polly at home and I’m fond of being called so; but Marie is Frenchified and silly.” ¶ “I spell my own name with an ie, and so do all the girls.” ¶ “And what a jumble of Netties, Nellies, Hatties, and Sallies there is. How ‘Pollie’ would look spelt so!”

   1869, Louisa May Alcott, An Old-Fashioned Girl

   sweet → sweetie

   smile → smilie (also smiley)

   Catherine → Cathie (also Cathi, Cathy); Katherine → Kathie (also Kathi, Kathy)

   Bill → Billie (also Billi, Billy)

   Synonyms: -cule, -ee, -el, -et, -ette, -icle, -kin, -le

2. Forming feminine or gender‐neutral forms of given names.

   Bill → Billie

   2 more examples

   Jesse → Jessie

   James → Jamie

3. AustraliaNew ZealandUKForms colloquial clippings (often functioning as familiarizers), truncating the root to a single stressed syllable.

   costume → cossie

   5 more examples

   Australia/Australian → Aussie

   mosquito → mozzie

   position → possie

   barbecue → barbie

   biscuit → bikkie

4. occasionally derogatoryForming colloquial nouns signifying the person or thing associated with the suffixed noun or verb.

   bike → bikie

   4 more examples

   fridge → fridgie (“fridge magnet”)

   road → roadie

   surf → surfie

   town → townie

5. Forming nouns relative to an adjective.

   slow → slowie

   2 more examples

   small → smallie

   tough → toughie

6. Forming colloquial interjections or phrases.

   ow → owie

   4 more examples

   alright → alrightie

   eww → ewwie

   good → goodie

   oops → oopsie

alternative -ee · alternative -ey

1. alternativearchaicAlternative spelling of -y (adjectival suffix).

   hug → huggie

alternative -ee · alternative -ey

1. A photograph, especially a selfie.