Dictionary

-ster en · X

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-West Germanic *-astrijā Old English -estre Middle English -estere English -ster 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.

Meanings

1. (morpheme) Someone who is, or who is associated with, or who does something specified.
2. (humorous, morpheme, offensive, sometimes) A diminutive appended to a person's name.
   • “Never better,” the Raabster spat back. “Just get on with it. What’s the score?” 2023 April 21, John Crace, “Psycho goes down raging: the liberal wokerati finally get to Raab”, in The Guardian, →ISSN, archived from the original on 13 May 2023:
   • 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."

Forms

Synonyms

-or · -er