Meanings
- uncountableThe state or characteristic of being unctuous.
Only Mr. Radbolt's unctuousness—surely it would have smoothed the stormiest waves—saved the social situation.
1919, Anthony Hope, chapter 17, in The Secret of the Tower1 more example
Plum-pudding is the term bestowed upon certain fragmentary parts of the whale's flesh, here and there adhering to the blanket of blubber, and often participating to a considerable degree in its unctuousness.
1851, Herman Melville, chapter 94, in Moby DickSynonyms: unctuosity
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe state or characteristic of being unctuous.
More synonyms by meaning
nounsmug self-serving earnestness
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Hindi चिकनाई
- चिकनाई (ciknāī)the state or characteristic of being unctuous
Irish ungthacht, olar
- ungthachtthe state or characteristic of being unctuous
- olarthe state or characteristic of being unctuous
- plásántachtthe state or characteristic of being unctuous
Spanish untuosidad
- untuosidadthe state or characteristic of being unctuous
Turkish yılışıklık
- yılışıklıkthe state or characteristic of being unctuous
Cite this entry
unctuousness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unctuousness
“unctuousness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unctuousness. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “unctuousness,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unctuousness.
Source: unctuousness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.