-man

From Middle English -man, from the noun man.

• IPA^(key): /mən/, /mæn/

-man (noun-forming suffix, plural -men, feminine -woman)

1. Someone (possibly implied male) who is an expert in an area or who takes part in an activity.

   ‎horse + ‎-man → ‎horseman

   ‎sports + ‎-man → ‎sportsman

2. Someone (possibly implied male) who is employed or holds a position in an area.

   ‎law + ‎-man → ‎lawman

   ‎news + ‎-man → ‎newsman

3. Someone (possibly implied male) who has special characteristics relating to a topic or area.

   ‎free + ‎-man → ‎freeman

   ‎ice + ‎-man → ‎iceman

   ‎super + ‎-man → ‎superman

4. Someone (possibly implied male) who has a particular nationality.

   ‎Scots + ‎-man → ‎Scotsman

   ‎Dutch + ‎-man → ‎Dutchman

   ‎China + ‎-man → ‎Chinaman

   ‎Yorkshire + ‎-man → ‎Yorkshireman

5. A man whose name begins with the preceding letter.

   ‎H + ‎-man → ‎H-man (“man whose name starts with H, e.g. Harry”)

   ‎J + ‎-man → ‎J-man (“man whose name starts with an J”)

6. A ship which has special characteristics relating to a trade or area.

   ‎Guinea + ‎-man → ‎Guineaman (“ship of the West African slave trade”)

   ‎East India + ‎-man → ‎East Indiaman

   ‎merchant + ‎-man → ‎merchantman

   ‎Greenland + ‎-man → ‎Greenlandman (“a whaling ship”)

   ‎China + ‎-man → ‎Chinaman (“sailing ship engaged in the Old China Trade”)

• To more explicitly include people regardless of gender, the suffix -person or a synonym, for example police officer instead of policeman, can be used.
• Frequently employed in the names of male comic book superheroes, e.g. Aquaman, Batman, Spider-Man, Superman.
• The pronunciation can either have a full vowel or a schwa, but they are not in free variation; some words formed with this suffix can be used with only one of the possible pronunciations.

• -person

• Category:English terms suffixed with -man

See also descendants of man.

• Sranan Tongo: -man
• → French: -man
• → Japanese: マン (-man)
• → Welsh: -mon

• “-man”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

• MNA, N. Am., 'Nam, mna, AMN, Nam, NAM, 'nam, NMA

• -mën — Tosk, dialectal

Akin to Romanian -oman. Perhaps borrowed from Ottoman Turkish ـمان (-man),^[1] alternatively from Slavic.^[2][3]

-man (originally Tosk)^[2]

1. forms derogatory adjectives and nouns.

   Synonyms: -laq, -luq, -lec, -rash, -vec

• The vast majority of derived terms also contain the infix -a-.

• Newmark, L.; Hubbard, P.; Prifti, P. (1982), Standard Albanian: a reference grammar for students, Stanford University Press, →ISBN, § 3.4.1 D, page 173

-man

1. Person suffix (male), used to derive agent nouns from verbs as well as nouns for people characterised by a trait from nouns and adjectives.

From Ancient Greek -μανής (-manḗs).

-man m (feminine -mana)

1. Forms adjectives pertaining to particular manias or addictions.

   ‎biblio- + ‎-man → ‎bibliòman (“bibliomaniacal”)

   ‎cocaïna + ‎-man → ‎cocaïnòman (“addicted to cocaine”)

2. -mane, -maniac (forms nouns referring to persons suffering from particular manias or addictions)

   ‎clepto- + ‎-man → ‎cleptòman (“cleptomaniac”)

   ‎morfina + ‎-man → ‎morfinòman (“morphine addict”)

Generally used with a stressed form of the interfix -o- to ease pronunciation.

• Catalan terms suffixed with -man

  bibliòman

  cleptòman

  cocaïnòman

  heroïnòman

  piròman

• -mania

• “-man”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026

From French -mane.

-man

1. (generally) -maniac

• -fil

• “-man” in Den Danske Ordbog

From the Dutch noun man (“man”).

-man m (plural -mannen or -lieden or -lui or -mensen)

1. someone (implied male) who is an expert in an area

   sportman ― sportsman

   zakenman ― businessman

2. someone (implied male) who is employed or holds a position in an area

   brandweerman ― fireman

   politieman ― policeman

3. someone (implied male) who has special characteristics relating to an area

   dolleman ― madman

   landsman ― countryman

4. someone (implied male) who is derived from a particular nationality

   Engelsman ― Englishman

   Fransman ― Frenchman

The plural form of -man is -lieden (-lui in spoken language) or sometimes -mannen and -mensen, e.g.

sportlieden / sportlui ― sportsmen

brandweerlieden / brandweerlui / brandweermannen ― firemen

politiemannen / politiemensen ― policemen

Fransmannen / Fransen ― Frenchmen

• -vrouw f

Borrowed from English -man.

• IPA^(key): /man/

-man m (plural -mans or -men, feminine -woman)

1. used to form names of male professions or sportspersons

• In European and Canadian French, most words with this ending like businessman are borrowed directly from English, while some such as tennisman are not.
• In sub-Saharan Africa, the suffix is much more productive and, in more slangy language, appended to anything relating to a habitual activity: gbanman (“druggie”) (Ivory Coast) from Mande gban (“drug”), boukiman (“speculator”) (Senegal) from Wolof buki (“hyena”), djigboman (“magician”) (Ivory Coast) from Bété djigbo (“fetish”), as well as the more generally used taximan (“taxi driver”) (many countries) and gbakaman (“marshrutka-driver”) (Ivory Coast) from gbaka (“marshrutka”).

From French -ment (“-ly”).

-man

1. used to form adverbs out of adjectives; -ly

From French -mane.

-man m

1. (generally) -maniac

• “-man” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From French -mane.

-man m

1. (generally) -maniac

• “-man” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

-man

1. allative or dative case; indicates the direction of movement or the indirect object

   Llaqtaman risaq.

   I will go towards the town.

   Paykunaman mikhunata apachkani.

   I am taking food to them.

2. potential mood; indicates possibility or potential

   Qam rikunkiman.

   You would see.

   Ñuqaqa manam haqayman purinimanchu.

   I would not walk over there.

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

• IPA^(key): /maŋ/, /man/, [mã̠ŋ], [mɑ̟ŋ]

-man

1. Person suffix, used to derive agent nouns from verbs as well as nouns for people characterised by a trait from nouns and adjectives.

-man

1. Form of -men after the vowels A / I / O / U.