full-suspension

The term is a modern technical compound, primarily from the late 20th century with the rise of advanced mountain biking. The first element, "full," employs its Old English sense of completeness to modify the second. "Suspension" originates from the Latin suspendere, meaning "to hang up," which evolved through mechanical engineering to denote systems that allow parts to move independently while dampening vibration. Literally "complete hanging-up system," the logic of the compound directly describes a vehicle equipped with shock absorption on both axles, as opposed to a "front-suspension" or "hardtail" design.

Structure: full (complete) + suspension (system for absorbing shock) - full: From Old English full, meaning "entire, complete." It functions as an intensifier in this compound, indicating a comprehensive system. - suspension: From Latin suspensio (a hanging up), from suspendere (to hang up). In this technical context, it functions as the core noun denoting the shock-absorbing mechanism.