-ee

-ee ¹

suff.

1.

a. One that receives or benefits from a specified action: addressee.

b. One that possesses a specified thing: mortgagee.

2. One that performs a specified action: absentee.

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[Middle English, from Old French -e, -ee, past participle suff., from Latin -tus; see -ate¹.]

Usage Note: Reflecting its origins in the French passive participle ending -é (feminine -ée), the suffix -ee was first used in English to refer to indirect objects and then to direct objects of transitive verbs, particularly in legal contexts (as in donee, lessee, or trustee) and in military and political jargon (draftee, trainee, or nominee). Beginning around the mid-19th century, primarily in American English, it was often extended to denote the agent or subject of an intransitive verb, as in standee, returnee, or attendee. The coining of new words ending in -ee continues to be common. A number of these coinages, such as honoree, deportee, and escapee, have become widely accepted. Many others, such as firee (one who is fired from a job), invitee, jokee, and roastee (one who is ridiculed at a roast), are created ad hoc and often have a comic effect. On rare occasions the suffix -ee has been applied to noun forms, giving us words like benefactee (from benefactor) and biographee (from biographer).