[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/ness/)

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# ness

noun (a ness, nesses — rare); suffix (-ness)

«ness» in the English dictionary: everyday and in Jewish tradition — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. As a suffix, «-ness» is added to an adjective to make a noun that names a quality or state: kind → kindness, happy → happiness, dark → darkness. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#m1)
2. As a word, a ness is a headland, a piece of high land sticking out into the sea; it appears in place names like Dungeness, Sheerness and Loch Ness area names. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#m2)
3. (a name) Loch Ness is a long deep lake in Scotland, famous for the legend of the Loch Ness Monster, «Nessie». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#m3)
4. (a name) Ness can also be a surname, such as Eliot Ness, an American lawman. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#m4)

### In the lessons

In English grammar lessons -ness is a key suffix for making abstract nouns from adjectives, and spelling rules apply: a final y changes to i (happy → happiness, lazy → laziness), but a final n is kept (sudden → suddenness). In geography a ness is a coastal feature, and Loch Ness is in lessons about Scotland and myths. Phrases: the Loch Ness Monster, Nessie.

### Examples

- Add -ness to «kind» to make «kindness». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x1)
- Happiness is spelt with an i because the y changes. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x2)
- The darkness made the forest feel scary. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x3)
- Dungeness is a ness on the coast of Kent. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x4)
- We read about the legend of the Loch Ness Monster. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x5)
- Nobody has ever proved that Nessie is real. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x6)
- Her gentleness made the shy puppy come closer. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x7)
- «Openness» keeps both n's: open + ness. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x8)
- One of these soldiers was a no-ble-man, whom everybody loved for his gen-tle-ness and kindness. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/#x9)

### Note

As a suffix, -ness makes uncountable nouns (kindness, sadness), though some can be countable (a kindness, many illnesses). Spelling: consonant + y becomes i before -ness (busy → business, happy → happiness); words ending in n keep it, so you get double n (keenness, thinness). On its own «ness» is rare outside place names, so if you see it alone it is probably a suffix or a name. The Loch Ness Monster is a legend, not a proven animal.

## In Jewish tradition

In English grammar lessons -ness is a key suffix for making abstract nouns from adjectives, and spelling rules apply: a final y changes to i (happy → happiness, lazy → laziness), but a final n is kept (sudden → suddenness). In geography a ness is a coastal feature, and Loch Ness is in lessons about Scotland and myths. Phrases: the Loch Ness Monster, Nessie.

### Note

As a suffix, -ness makes uncountable nouns (kindness, sadness), though some can be countable (a kindness, many illnesses). Spelling: consonant + y becomes i before -ness (busy → business, happy → happiness); words ending in n keep it, so you get double n (keenness, thinness). On its own «ness» is rare outside place names, so if you see it alone it is probably a suffix or a name. The Loch Ness Monster is a legend, not a proven animal.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «ness» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/ness/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«ness» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/ness.html) on Mova free.
- [Trees and pragmatics of «ness» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/N/ness/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«ness» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/judaism/w/ness.html) on Mova free.