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239.

Nouns denoting acts, or means and results of acts, are formed from roots or verb-stems by the use of the suffixes -



-men, N.; -mentum, N.; -mónium, N.; -mónia, F. 

ag-men, line of march, band;

regi-men, rule; regi- (rege-), stem of regere, to direct.
regi-mentum, rule; certá-men, contest, battle;


So colu-men, pillar; mó-men, movement; nó-men, name; flú-men, stream.

testi-mónium, testimony; testárí, to witness.
queri-mónia, complaint; querí, to complain.


-mónium and -mónia are also used as secondary, forming nouns from other nouns and from adjectives: as, sáncti-mónia, sanctity (sánctus, holy); mátri-mónium, marriage (máter, mother).



NOTE: Of these endings, -men is primary (cf. § 234. II. 14); -mentum is a compound of men- and to-, and appears for the most part later in the language than -men: as, mómen, movement (Lucr.); mómentum (later). So elementum is a development from L-M-N-a, l-m-n's (letters of the alphabet), changed to elementa along with other nouns in -men. -mónium and -mónia were originally compound secondary suffixes formed from món- (a by-form of men-), which was early associated with mo-. Thus almus (stem almo-), fostering; Almón, a river near Rome; alimónia, support. But the last was formed directly from aló when -mónia had become established as a supposed primary suffix.