-ish 1
1. a suffix used to form adjectives from nouns, with the sense of "belonging to" ( British; Danish; English; Spanish ); "after the manner of," "having the characteristics of," "like" ( babyish; girlish; mulish ); "addicted to," "inclined or tending to" ( bookish; freakish ); "near or about" ( fiftyish; sevenish ).
2. a suffix used to form adjectives from other adjectives, with the sense of "somewhat," "rather" ( oldish; reddish; sweetish ).
[ ME; OE -isc; c. G -isch, Goth -isks, Gk -iskos; akin to -ESQUE ]
-ish 2
a suffix occurring in i -stem verbs borrowed from French: ravish.
[ -iss-, extended s. of verbs with infinitives in -ir -isc-, in inceptive verbs ]