I. əˈfiks, (ˈ)a|f- transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Medieval Latin affixare, from Latin affixus, past participle of affigere to fasten to, from ad- + figere to fasten — more at dike
1. : to attach physically (as by nails or glue) : fasten — usually used with to
the king's seal dangled from the ribbon which affixed it to the proclamation
affix the label to the package
2. : to attach in any way : connect with : add , subjoin — usually used with to
a penalty affixed to hasty, superficial thinking — A.N.Whitehead
a title of honor affixed to a person's name
affix your signature to the letter
3. : impress
dropping a blob of wax upon the parchment, he affixed his seal
4. obsolete : to fix upon : settle upon : fix
Synonyms: see fasten
II. ˈaˌfiks noun
( -es )
Etymology: French affixe, from Latin affixus, past participle
1.
a. : a sound or sequence of sounds or, in writing, a letter or sequence of letters occurring as a bound form attached to the beginning or end of a word, base, or phrase or inserted within a word or base and serving to produce a derivative word (as un- in untie, -ate in chlorate, -ish in morning-after-ish ) or an inflectional form (as -s in cats ) or the basis of part or all of a paradigm (as L -n- in vinco “I conquer”, vincit “he conquers” as contrasted with the perfect tense forms vici “I have conquered”, vicit “he has conquered”) — compare infix , prefix , suffix II 1
b. among animal breeders : a registered generic or common name combined with the individual name of purebred animals to indicate the particular breeding or strain
2. : appendage , addition
3. : a small decorative figure (as a flower) added to ceramic or bronze ware or to an architectural detail
• af·fix·al ˈaˌfiksəl or af·fix·i·al (ˈ)a|fiksēəl adjective