MTEL Communication Literacy Skills : Reading Practice Test

Which noun suffix indicates a result of a specific action?

1. -hood

2. -tude

3. -ment

4. -able

The correct answer is: -ment

The suffix -ment is used to form nouns that denote an action or resulting state of a verb. It signifies the result or process of the action expressed by the verb it is attached to. For instance, in the word "development," the suffix indicates the process or result of developing something. This illustrates how -ment captures the sense of a consequence or outcome derived from a specific external activity. The other suffixes serve different functions: -hood typically denotes a state or condition (as seen in "childhood"), -tude represents a state or quality (like in "attitude"), and -able indicates the capability or suitability for an action (seen in words such as "readable"). Thus, -ment is the most fitting choice when discussing nouns specifically indicating the results of actions.