A Quick and Simple Dictionary

-ism

1. Suffix.  forming nouns on action or process or result based on the accompanying verb in -ize.
2. Suffix.  forming the name of a system, school of thought or theory based on the name of its subject or object or alternatively on the name of its founder ((sense, when de-capitalized, these overlap with the generic "terms for doctrines" sense below, e.g. Liberalism vs. liberalism) ).
3. Suffix.  the action, conduct or condition of a class of persons, "behaving like a ---" ((sense, with overtones of the "terms for doctrines" sense below) ).
4. Suffix.  class-names or descriptive terms for doctrines or principles in general.
5. Suffix.  a peculiarity or characteristic of language.
6. Suffix.  an ideology expressing belief in the superiority of a certain class within the concept expressed by the root word ((sense, based on a late 20th-century narrowing of the "terms for a doctrine" sense) ).
7. Suffix.  (medicine) A condition or syndrome caused by or associated with a specific type of organism.