Meanings
plural plainnesses
- uncountableusuallyThe condition of being plain (in all senses)
Thy plainness moves me more than eloquence And here choose I. Joy be the consequence!
c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]1 more example
Yet her beauty clung to her like an identity she was trying to deny and her plainness kept slipping like a bad disguise.
1986, John le Carré, A Perfect SpySynonyms: normalcy
- countableusuallyThe product or result of being plain
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe condition of being plain (in all senses)
More synonyms by meaning
nounclarity as a consequence of being perspicuous
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Ancient Greek λιτότης
- λιτότης (litótēs)the condition of being plain
Bulgarian простота
- простота (prostota)the condition of being plain
German Einfachheit, Schlichtheit
- Einfachheitthe condition of being plain
- Schlichtheitthe condition of being plain
Cite this entry
plainness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/plainness
“plainness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/plainness. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “plainness,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/plainness.
Source: plainness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.