-genic

/-ˈdʒɛ.nɪk/

//-ˈdʒɛ.nɪk// suffix

"genic" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“-genic” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a suffix. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Forms adjectives relating to things producing or generating something.

Corpus desk

Index EN-genic · -genic · English

-genic · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "-" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for -genic
PropertyValue
Headword-genic
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechSuffix
IPA/-ˈdʒɛ.nɪk/
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “-genic” in English

-genicsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

-genic is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as asuffix, transcribed /-ˈdʒɛ.nɪk/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for -genic in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed either from French -gène or directly from its etymological source, Ancient Greek -γενής (-genḗs, “offspring; kind”), with -ic. Compare -gen. The correct English form is -genic, spelled --G-E-N-I-C.

Definition

  1. 1
    Forms adjectives relating to things producing or generating something.
  2. 2
    Forms adjectives relating to things produced or generated by something.
  3. 3
    Forms adjectives relating to things suitable to be produced or reproduced.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how -genic appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. carcino- + -genic → carcinogenic (“tending to cause cancer”)
  2. bacterio- + -genic → bacteriogenic (“caused by bacteria”)

Etymology

Borrowed either from French -gène or directly from its etymological source, Ancient Greek -γενής (-genḗs, “offspring; kind”), with -ic. Compare -gen.

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "-genic"?
"-genic" is spelled --G-E-N-I-C. The IPA pronunciation is /-ˈdʒɛ.nɪk/.
What does "-genic" mean?
As a suffix, "-genic" means: Forms adjectives relating to things producing or generating something.
How do you pronounce "-genic"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "-genic" is /-ˈdʒɛ.nɪk/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "-genic"?
Borrowed either from French -gène or directly from its etymological source, Ancient Greek -γενής (-genḗs, “offspring; kind”), with -ic. Compare -gen. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list