Use of 類 as a suffix


Specifically, I was trying to understand the difference between 酸 and 酸類.

I'm guessing that adding 類 changes it from a specific acid to the class of all
acids, but I really have no idea.

More generally, how and when should I use 類 as a suffix?




Your guess is correct. 酸類 explicitly refers to all kinds of acids. As
jisho.org says, 類 is a suffix: <https://jisho.org/word/%E9%A1%9E>

There are several similar suffixes including -類, -属, -系 and -群, variously
translated like "X series", "X group", "X family", "category X", "X-oids" and
so on and on. They are used differently according to the conventions of each
field, and I don't think there is a large essential difference.

In particular, 類 is common in the context of biological classification. See:
[類 in animal and plant names](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/18549/5010)




Your guess is correct. 酸類 explicitly refers to all kinds of acids. As
jisho.org says, 類 is a suffix: <https://jisho.org/word/%E9%A1%9E>

There are several similar suffixes including -類, -属, -系 and -群, variously
translated like "X series", "X group", "X family", "category X", "X-oids" and
so on and on. They are used differently according to the conventions of each
field, and I don't think there is a large essential difference.

In particular, 類 is common in the context of biological classification. See:
[類 in animal and plant names](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/18549/5010)

