-inae

• -inæ (obsolete)

From Latin -īnae, feminine plural form of -īnus (“-ine”).

-inae f pl

1. (taxonomy) Used to form names of subfamilies of animals.
2. (taxonomy) Used to form names of subtribes of plants, algae and fungi and viruses.

• All derivations featuring this suffix are pluralia tantum, but were formally understood as adjectives modifying the Latin feminine plural nouns bestiae (“beasts”) or plantae; e.g. Felinae (“cats”) = bestiae felinae (“feline beasts”).
• With the understanding that, for example, members of Fungi, Archaea, and Virus are neither beasts nor plants, the historical fiction has little contemporary relevance.

-īnae

1. inflection of -īnus:
   1. nominative/vocative feminine plural
   2. genitive/dative feminine singular