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the suffix {-ure}. The first is the action of, the second is the process of, and the third is the result of. Nonetheless, not all the words attached to the suffix {-ure}
can be categorized into those meanings. Therefore, finding out the meaning of each word receiving the suffix {-ure} by referring to Oxford Advanced Learner’s
Dictionary of Current English Ninth Edition 2015 is needed. The following table is the categorization of the meanings of the suffix {-ure} lexically and its
examples.
Table 6. The Categories of the Meanings of the Words Attached to the Suffix {-ure}
No. Meaning
Quantity Percentage
Example
1 the act of
12 40
departure 2
the result of 9
30 moisture
3 the state of
3 10
composure 4
the art of 3
10 architecture
5 the feeling of
3 10
closure
TOTAL
30 100
1. The Suffix {-ure} Having the Meaning ‘the act of-’
Most of the words attached to the suffix {-ure} are dominated by the meaning ‘the act of-’. This meaning can be seen obviously in the dictionary.
According to the data, there are eighteen words classified into this meaning. The table below is the examples of the suffix {-ure} having the meaning ‘the act of-’.
Table 7. The Suffix {-ure} Having the Meaning ‘the act of-’ No.
Noun Suffix {-ure} Meaning
Base Word
Base Word
1. depart
departure to leave a place
the act of leaving a place
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2. erase
erasure to remove something
completely the act of removing or
destroying something 3.
fail failure
to not do something an act of not doing
something 4.
implicate implicature to show or suggest
somebody the act of suggesting
5. seize
seizure to take somebody or
something in your hand suddenly and
using force the act of using force to
take control
All of the bases in this category are classified as verb bases. When the suffix {-ure} is added to those bases, their meanings change into ‘the act of doing
X’ in which X refers to the verb base. The meaning of the depart which is ‘to leave a place’, for example, is related to the word departure. The word departure
has the meaning ‘the act of leaving a place’ or simply said ‘the act of depart’. The additional meaning ‘the act of-’ comes from the suffix {-ure} since departure is
formed from depart + {-ure}. Another example can be seen in the word erasure. It has the meaning ‘the act of removing or destroying something’ while its base,
erase, has the meaning ‘to remove something completely’. It means, the meaning of the word erasure is ‘the act of erase’. The same things go to three other data in
the table above and also seven other data in this undergraduate thesis. From that discussion, it can be concluded that one of the meanings of
the suffix {-ure} in a word is to make the meaning of its base become ‘the act of X’ in which X refers to the base. Furthermore, all bases of the words attached to
the suffix {-ure} having the meaning ‘the act of-’ are verb bases.
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2. The Suffix {-ure} Having the Meaning ‘the result of-’
