▪ I. -ice, suffix1
in ME. also -is(e, -ys(e, etc.
1. a. OF. -ice (-ise), of non-popular origin, ad. L. -itia (Sp. -icia, It. -izia), or -itius, -itium (Sp. -icio, It. -izio). Thus avarice, justice, malice, notice (ad. L. avāritia, justitia, malitia, nōtitia), the later police (ad. L. politia = polītīa), and the French formations cowardice, jaundice. The masc. and neut. are represented by novice, precipice, service (= L. novitius, precipitium, servitium).
L. -itia would normally have given OF. -eise, -oise, through common Romanic -{edotbl}tja, -ezja, but in the literary language this was represented by -ece, -esce (as in parece, pares-ce:—L. pigritia; haut-ece, haut-esce:—L. altitia), subsequently assimilated to -esse from L. -issa (cf. mod.F. noblesse, paresse, hautesse).
2. The ending -ice has various other origins, partly through assimilation to the preceding; as in the words (ac)complice, (ap)prentice, bodice, caprice, coppice, crevice, lattice, poultice, practice.
▪ II. -ice, -icè, suffix2
(ɪsiː)
in med.L. forming adverbs from adjs., as Anglice, Gallice, ironice, Scotticè, Scoticè, and hence used occas. to form jocular nonce adverbs on English stems, as golficè.
| 1743 Pope Dunciad 1 (footnote to l. 23), Ironicè, alluding to Gulliver's representations of both. 1886 Golficè [see divot n. 2]. |