Word Work – The Doer suffixes “-er”, “-ist”, “-ian”, “-ant/ent”
In English, we add suffixes to words to modify their meaning. When we add the above suffixes to words,
we refer to the person doing that activity. For example, a worker is someone who works, an artist is
someone who does art, a magician is someone who does magic, and an occupant is someone who
occupies.
Consider the following words:
atheist
Baptist
Buddhist
communist
trade unionist
pharmacist
scientist
chemist
artist
physicist
philanthropist
dramatist
cartoonist
publicist
dentist
Many of these should be easy to figure out. Fill in the blank with the appropriate vocabulary word.
1. A person who is involved in science is a ______________________________.
2. Communism is practiced by ____________________________.
3. Buddhism is practiced by __________________________________.
4. Someone who belongs to and believes in trade unions is a _______________________________
5. A person who writes dramas (plays) is a _____________________________________.
6. A person w ho creates cartoons is a ____________________________________.
7. A person who is involved in physics is a _____________________________.
8. A person who is involved in chemistry is a _______________________________.
9. A person who is involved in art is an ______________________________.
10. A person involved in a pharmacy or with pharmaceuticals is a ______________________.
11. A person who looks after teeth (les dents) is a _______________________________.
Other words are trickier to figure out. What do you think these words mean?
1. Atheist - _______________________________________________________________________
2. Baptist - _______________________________________________________________________
3. Philanthropist - _________________________________________________________________
4. Publicist - ______________________________________________________________________