-ish is added to adjectives to form adjectives which indicate that someone or something has a quality to a small extent. For example, something that is largish is fairly large.
She is tallish, brown-haired, and clear-skinned.
With her was a youngish man in a dinner jacket.
...a tank of greenish water.
2. suffix
-ish is added to nouns and names to form adjectives which indicate that someone or something is like a particularkind of person or thing. For example, 'childish' means like a child, or typical of a child.
She had entirely lost her girlish chubbiness.
...a man of monkish appearance.
...his affecting, Tom Petty-ish voice.
3. suffix
-ish is added to words referring to times, dates, or ages to form words which indicate that the time or age mentioned is approximate.
I'll call you guys tomorrow. Noon-ish.
The nurse was fiftyish.
ish in British English
(ɪʃ)
sentence substitute
slang
used to express reservation or qualified assent
Things are looking up. Ish
-ish in British English
suffix forming adjectives
1.
of or belonging to a nationality or group
Scottish
2. often derogatory
having the manner or qualities of; resembling
slavish
prudish
boyish
3.
somewhat; approximately
yellowish
sevenish
4.
concerned or preoccupied with
bookish
Word origin
Old English -isc; related to German -isch, Greek -iskos
-ish in American English
(ɪʃ)
1.
a.
of or belonging to (a specified nation or people)
Spanish, Irish
b.
like or characteristic of
devilish, boyish
c.
tending to be or verging on being (a specified person or thing)
knavish
d.
somewhat, rather
tallish, bluish
e. Informal
approximately, about
thirtyish
2. forming verbs, it was generalized from certain verbs of French origin
finish, cherish, punish
Word origin
(sense 1) ME < OE -isc, akin to Ger -isch, L -iscus, Gr -iskos; (sense 2) ME -ishen, -ischen, -issen < OFr -iss-, -is-, stem element in pres. tense < L -isc-, in inceptive verbs