knowingness

C2+ Topic:Abstract Ideas

US /ˈnoʊɪŋnəs/ UK /ˈnəʊɪŋnəs/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the quality of seeming to know more than one reveals

There was a sly knowingness in her smile.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the quality of seeming to... awareness shrewdness sophistication worldliness cunning perceptiveness

Opposites

naivety ignorance innocence

Word family

Related forms know knowing knowledge

Etymology

From knowing (present participle of know, Old English cnāwan) + the noun suffix -ness, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵneh₃- ('to know').

cnāwan Old English *ǵneh₃- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Abstract Ideas Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# knowingness

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈnoʊɪŋnəs/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈnəʊɪŋnəs/

## Meanings
1. the quality of seeming to know more than one reveals

## Examples
- There was a sly knowingness in her smile.

## Synonyms
- awareness
- shrewdness
- sophistication
- worldliness
- cunning
- perceptiveness

## Antonyms
- naivety
- ignorance
- innocence

## Related Forms
- know
- knowing
- knowledge

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: cnāwan
- Root: *ǵneh₃-

## Etymology
From knowing (present participle of know, Old English cnāwan) + the noun suffix -ness, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵneh₃- ('to know').

## AI Etymology
Knowingness comes from knowing (present participle of know, Old English cnāwan) + the noun suffix -ness, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵneh₃- ('to know'). The etymological trail includes Old English cnāwan and Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃-. As a noun, knowingness means the quality of seeming to know more than one reveals. The same family is visible in related forms such as know, knowing, and knowledge. Morphologically, the word is built from the elements named in its history, so the modern form preserves a visible compound, prefix, or suffix structure.

## Topics
- Abstract Ideas
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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