-ance

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. State or condition: absorptance.
2. n. Action: continuance.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. A suffix of Latin origin, forming nouns from adjectives in -ant, or directly from verbs, as significance, defiance, purveyance, etc.; also used with native English verbs, as in abidance, forbearance, furtherance, hindrance, riddance, etc.

Wiktionary

1. n. Added to the stem of a verb to form a noun indicating a state or condition, such as result or capacity, associated with the verb.
2. n. A process or action.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. A suffix signifying action; also, quality or state. See -ancy.