Endigung

Endigung is a term occasionally encountered in German-language linguistic writing as a variant spelling of Endung, meaning the ending or suffix attached to the end of a word stem to convey grammatical information. In standard modern German grammar, the preferred form is Endung, and Endigung appears mostly in historical texts, older grammars, or as a regional/archaic spelling variant. The concept, however, is widely used beyond German to refer to the suffixes that mark inflection in many languages.

In linguistics, an ending (Endung) functions as an inflectional morpheme that modifies a word’s form to express grammatical categories such as number, case, gender, tense, mood, person, or degree. Endings can be pronounced as separate phonological units but are often written as part of the word’s orthography. They are contrasted with the stem, to which the endings are attached, and with extensions such as prefixes that occur at the beginning of a word.

Examples illustrate the general idea rather than a universal rule. A noun may take a plural ending, such as Hund becoming Hunde in some varieties of German. An adjective may carry a comparative ending, as groß becoming größer. A verb may show person and number endings in finite forms, such as ich gehe vs. du gehst. In many languages, the set of possible endings is central to the system of grammar.

In practice, the term Endung is the standard reference in contemporary German grammar; Endigung is largely historical or variant and should be clarified when encountered in older texts.