ess

1 of 2

noun

1
: the letter s
2
: something resembling the letter S in shape
especially : an S-shaped curve in a road

-ess

2 of 2

noun suffix

: female
giantess

Examples of ess in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
But no one made Shepherd feel like the hostess with the most-ess more than Nash. Victoria Uwumarogie, Essence, 3 May 2021 But no one made Shepherd feel like the hostess with the most-ess more than Nash. Victoria Uwumarogie, Essence, 3 May 2021 New Blue bites ten yards out of its disadvantage on hard braking, then closes in several feet more as the pairs arcs into the left-hand entry to the uphill ess-section. Don Sherman, Car and Driver, 31 Aug. 2020 Elliott and Truex were back in front for the restart on Lap 66, but Truex challenged right off the green flag, the two exchanging bumps speeding up through the esses, but Elliott never relinquished the lead. John Kekis, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Aug. 2019 The Supra manages to be both stable in long sweepers and agile in esses that force the suspension to load and unload side-to-side. Ezra Dyer, Popular Mechanics, 12 May 2019 Each busin ess has ownership ties to Mr. Ruderman or a separate Ruderman family trust, according to the complaint. Peg Brickley, WSJ, 29 Aug. 2018 Day One Arrive in Istanbul, where you will be met at the gate of the aircraft by our VIP host/ess with a name sign. Karen Fedorko Sefer, Town & Country, 5 Oct. 2016 Other common menu mispronunciations include espresso (it’s ess, not ex) and pho (fuh), the Vietnamese dish many mistakenly call foe. Julie Jargon, WSJ, 15 Sep. 2017 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ess.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun suffix

Middle English -esse, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin -issa, from Greek

First Known Use

Noun

1540, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ess was in 1540

Dictionary Entries Near ess

Cite this Entry

“Ess.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ess. Accessed 2 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

-ess

noun suffix
əs,
is,
 also  ˌes
: female
priestess
Etymology

Noun suffix

derived from Greek -issa (feminine noun suffix)

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