- (forming nouns from adjectives ending in -t, -tic, -te, and -nt) indicating state, quality, or condition: plutocracy, lunacy, intimacy, infancy
- (forming abstract nouns from other nouns) rank or office: captaincy
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
-cy, suffix. -cy is used to form nouns.
Cy., an abbreviation of:
- It is attached to adjectives that have stems that end in -t, -te, -tic, and esp. -nt
- to form abstract nouns:democrat + -cy → democracy; expedient + -cy → expediency;lunatic + -cy → lunacy.
- to form action nouns: vacant + -cy → vacancy;
occupant + -cy → occupancy.
- -cy is attached to nouns with the meaning "rank or office of'': captain + -cy → captaincy (= rank or office of a captain);
magistra(te) + -cy → magistracy (= office of a magistrate).
Cy., an abbreviation of:
- county.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
-cy suffix
Cy
(sī),USA pronunciation n.
CY,
cy,
-cy,
cy.,
- a male given name, form of Cyrus.
CY,
- Timecalendar year.
cy,
- Radio and Televisioncycle;
cycles.
-cy,
- a suffix used to form abstract nouns from adjectives with stems in -t, -te, -tic, and esp. -nt (democracy;
accuracy;
expediency;
stagnancy;
lunacy), and sometimes used to form action nouns (vacancy;
occupancy). - a suffix of nouns denoting rank or office, sometimes attached to the stem of a word rather than to the word itself:captaincy; magistracy.
- in most cases to be analyzed as consonant + -y3: the consonant making the whole or the last member of the preceding morpheme representing French -cie, -tie, Latin -cia, -tia, Greek -kia, -keia, -tia, -teia
- county.
cy.,
- Weights and Measurescapacity.
- currency.
- Radio and Televisioncycle;
cycles.
'-cy' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
abnormalcy
- accountancy
- adenosine cyclic monophosphate
- adenylate cyclase
- ammonium cyanate
- bald cypress
- bankruptcy
- baronetcy
- billing cycle
- business cycle
- Callippic cycle
- captaincy
- carbon cycle
- cardiac cycle
- Carnot cycle
- celibacy
- cell cycle
- cimetidine
- citric acid cycle
- Clausius cycle
- clemency
- colonelcy
- competency
- complacency
- congruency
- conveniency
- copper cyanide
- cuprous cyanide
- curacy
- Cy
- cyan blue
- cyanide process
- cyanogenic
- cyano group
- cyanuric acid
- cybernetics
- cyberphobia
- cycad
- cyclamen aldehyde
- cyclamic acid
- cycle billing
- cycle of indiction
- cyclery
- cyclical
- cyclical unemployment
- cyclic shift
- cyclist
- cyclize
- cyclohexylsulfamic acid
- cyclone