-μα

From Proto-Hellenic *-mə, from Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥, with the oblique stem -ματ- (-mat-) from Proto-Hellenic *-mət-, from Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥-to- (seen also in Latin -mentum).

-μᾰ • (-ma) n (genitive -μᾰτος); third declension

1. Added to verbal stems to form neuter nouns denoting the effect or result of an action, a particular instance of an action, or the object of an action

   ἀθλέω (athléō, “compete”) → ἄθλημα (áthlēma, “contest”)

   ἀθύρω (athúrō, “play”) → ἄθυρμα (áthurma, “toy”)

   βδελύττομαι (bdelúttomai, “to feel nausea, to be sick”) → βδέλυγμα (bdélugma, “abomination”)

   γράφω (gráphō, “write”) → γράμμα (grámma, “that which is written, letter”)

   δέρω (dérō, “flay, skin”) → δέρμα (dérma, “skin”)

   ἐκπῑ́νω (ekpī́nō, “drink out”) → ἔκπωμα (ékpōma, “drinking-cup”)

   θεωρέω (theōréō, “observe”) → θεώρημα (theṓrēma, “observation, theorem”)

   μανθάνω (manthánō, “learn”) → μάθημα (máthēma, “lesson”)

   νοέω (noéō, “think”) → νόημα (nóēma, “thought”)

   ποιέω (poiéō, “make”) → ποίημα (poíēma, “poem, or in general something made”)

   σπείρω (speírō, “sow”) → σπέρμα (spérma, “that which is sown, seed”)

   σχίζω (skhízō, “divide”) → σχίσμα (skhísma, “that which is divided”)

   τέμνω (témnō, “cut”) → τμῆμα (tmêma, “section”)

Resulting nouns always have recessive accent.

• Smyth, Herbert Weir (1920) “Part III: Formation of Words”, in A Greek grammar for colleges, Cambridge: American Book Company, § 861
• Sihler, Andrew L. (1995) New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN

Inherited from the Ancient Greek -μα (-ma).

IPA^(key): /ma/

-μα • (-ma) n

1. added to a verb form to create gerund and action nouns:

   ‎καπνίζω (kapnízo, “to smoke”) + ‎-μα (-ma) → ‎κάπνισμα (kápnisma, “smoking”)

   ‎ζεσταίνω (zestaíno, “to heat up”) + ‎-μα (-ma) → ‎ζέσταμα (zéstama, “warming up”)

   ‎τελειώνω (teleióno, “to end”) + ‎-μα (-ma) → ‎τελείωμα (teleíoma, “ending”)

   ‎ανοίγω (anoígo, “to open”) + ‎-μα (-ma) → ‎άνοιγμα (ánoigma, “opening”)

• -ιμο n (-imo)

• Category:Greek terms suffixed with -μα