Do some noun suffixes require specific kinds of nouns?


The examples I've seen of [中]{ちゅう} as a suffix seem to only use nouns that can
form suru-verbs, such as [準備]{じゅんび}中. I assume I can't use it for most
ordinary nouns, because people say 〜の[中]{なか} instead.

Is there any kind of general rule for this, or a category for noun suffixes
that expect a suru verb-forming noun? More generally, is there a way to figure
out how productive a given suffix is?

What about if I use a pronoun along the lines of [this sort of
アレ](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/101121)? Can it be understood
as standing for such a compatible noun?




The ～中｛ちゅう｝suffix means 'in the middle of doing something', basically.
家中｛いえちゅう｝ makes no sense because a house is not an action, and would be
interpreted as 家中｛いえじゅう｝ 'all over the house'. ～の中 usually just means 'inside
something'.

I don't believe there are too many suffixes of this nature so it should be
easy enough to learn them all.

