1.
suffix forming adjectives (arid; rapid).
Etymology: F -ide f. L -idus 2.
suffix forming nouns:
1. general (pyramid).
2 Biol. of structural constituents (plastid).
3 Bot. of a plant belonging to a family with a name in -aceae (orchid).
Etymology: from or after F -ide f. L -is -idis f. Gk -is -ida or -idos 3.
suffix forming nouns denoting:
1. Zool. an animal belonging to a family with a name in -idae or a class with a name in -ida (canid; arachnid).
2 a member of a person's family (Seleucid from Seleucus).
3 Astron. a a meteor in a group radiating from a specified constellation (Leonid from Leo). b a star of a class like one in a specified constellation (cepheid).
Etymology: from or after L -ides, pl. -idae or -ida 4.
suffix esp. US var. of -IDE.