suffix, a. Fr. -ant, sometimes:—L. -entem, -āntem, -ēntem, ending of pres. pple. (see -ENT); sometimes a later adaptation of -āntem only. All the participial forms were in OFr. levelled under -ant, the sole ending of the pr. pple., as L. amānt-, vidēnt-, sedēnt-, crēdent-em in Fr. amant, voyant, séant, croyant. But other words were subsequently adopted in their L. stem form, as prudent, présent, élégant. Hence Fr. words in -ant are of two kinds, one answering to L. -ānt, the other to L. -ent, -ēnt. All were adopted, in their actual Fr. forms, in Eng., where they subseq. became -au·nt; then again, with the change of stress, -ant, as L. affīdent-em, diffīdent-em, plicānt-em, servient-em, tenēnt-em, OFr. afiant, defiant, pliant, serjeant, tenant, ME. afia(u)·nt, defia(u)·nt, plia(u)·nt, serjeau·nt, tenau·nt. Most of them retain -ant, e.g., claimant, pleasant, poursuivant, servant, suppliant, valiant; but since 1500 some have been refashioned with -ent after L., wholly (as apparaunt, -ent), or partly (as in pendant, -ent, dependant, -ent, ascendant, -ent). Hence, inconsistency and uncertainty in the present spelling of many words, in which L. and Fr. analogies are at variance: see -ENT. Many new words of this class have been adopted from L. -āntem directly or through later Fr., or have been formed on L. analogies, or adopted from mod.Fr. and Romance -ant, -ante; as concomitant, protestant, commandant, anæsthesiant. For sense, see -ENT.
