-cilla

See also: cilla and Cilla

Spanish

Etymology

From -c-, a formant found originally in Latin -culus (rebracketed from -ulus added to nouns ending in -cus), + -illa.

Suffix

-cilla f (noun-forming suffix, plural -cillas)

1. Alternative form of -cillo; added to feminine nouns to form diminutives

   ‎mujer (“woman”) + ‎-cilla → ‎mujercilla (“small woman”)

   ‎fuente (“spring, fountain”) + ‎-cilla → ‎fuentecilla (“small spring, small fountain”)

   ‎canción (“song”) + ‎-cilla → ‎cancioncilla (“ditty, tune”)

   ‎nube (“cloud”) + ‎-cilla → ‎nubecilla (“small cloud”)

   ‎reñir (“to fight, to quarrel”) + ‎-cilla → ‎rencilla (“quarrel, row”)

   ‎pobre (“poor”) + ‎-cilla → ‎pobrecilla (“poor thing (referring to a female)”)

   ‎pastora (“shepherdess”) + ‎-cilla → ‎pastorcilla (“little shepherdess”)

   ‎gente (“people”) + ‎-cilla → ‎gentecilla (“proletariat, riffraff (derogatory)”)

Usage notes

• In most cases, -ecilla is used simply to indicate a small or endeared thing, without changing the basic meaning of the noun; however, in some cases, it is used to effect a greater change in meaning, as shown in the examples above.

Derived terms

Spanish terms suffixed with -cilla

Related terms

• -cecilla
• -ecilla
• -illa

 

See also

• -ita, -cita, -ecita, -cecita

Further reading

• “-cillo”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2023 November 28