Meanings
plural seemlinesses
- uncountableThe property of being seemly, appropriateness of conduct or behavior.
Her black dress, simple to austerity, suggested her bereaved condition, and I was innocently astonished that notwithstanding a real emotion she was able to dress the part she had to play according to her notions of seemliness.
1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, “ch. 10”, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLCSynonyms: honor, propriety, uprightness, angelicality, angelicalness, angelicity, angelicness, decency
- countableThe result or product of being seemly.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe property of being seemly, appropriateness of conduct or behavior.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna sense of propriety and consideration for others
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Middle Englishsemelynes
- Englishseemliness
From Middle English semelynes, semlynesse, equivalent to seemly + -ness.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Polish odpowiedniość, właściwość
- odpowiedniośćthe property of being seemly
- właściwośćthe property of being seemly
- stosownośćthe property of being seemly
Russian прили́чие
- прили́чие (prilíčije)the property of being seemly
Spanish decencia, ubicación
- decenciathe property of being seemly
- ubicaciónthe property of being seemly
Cite this entry
seemliness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seemliness
“seemliness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seemliness. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “seemliness,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seemliness.
Source: seemliness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.