worthiness

C2+ Topic:Ethics & Social Judgment

US /ˈwɝ.ði.nəs/ UK /ˈwɜː.ði.nəs/ See IPA manual

noun

Meanings

1

noun
the quality of deserving respect, merit, or esteem

The committee weighed each candidate's worthiness for the award.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the quality of deserving... merit worth value desert excellence virtue

Opposites

unworthiness worthlessness

Word family

Related forms worthy worth worthwhile

Etymology

From worthy + -ness, from Old English weorþ ('worth, value'), of Proto-Germanic origin.

weorþ Old English *werþaz Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Ethics & Social Judgment Word Formation & Derivatives

# worthiness

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ˈwɝ.ði.nəs
**IPA (UK):** ˈwɜː.ði.nəs

## Meanings
1. the quality of deserving respect, merit, or esteem

## Examples
- The committee weighed each candidate's worthiness for the award.

## Synonyms
- merit
- worth
- value
- desert
- excellence
- virtue

## Antonyms
- unworthiness
- worthlessness

## Related Forms
- worthy
- worth
- worthwhile

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: weorþ
- Root: *werþaz

## Etymology
From worthy + -ness, from Old English weorþ ('worth, value'), of Proto-Germanic origin.

## AI Etymology
Worthiness comes from worthy + -ness, from Old English weorþ ('worth, value'), of Proto-Germanic origin. In current use it is a noun meaning "the quality of deserving respect, merit, or esteem". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The suffix -ness turns a quality into a noun of state, condition, or degree. The surface form is compositional: its joined elements remain visible in the modern word. The historical chain includes Old English weorþ and Proto-Germanic *werþaz. Related English forms include worthy, worth, and worthwhile. The word's history is thus visible in its construction: the components remain interpretable even after the whole expression has settled into a conventional English meaning.

## Topics
- Ethics & Social Judgment
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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worthiness

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