greennessn.
/ˈɡriːnnᵻs/, U.S. /ˈɡri(n)nᵻs/ 1.
a. The green colour of vegetation; (concrete) green vegetation. Cf. green adj. 1a, green n.1 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by good growth > [noun] > flourishing vegetation or verdure
greennesseOE
tapetc1380
verdurea1400
verdour?a1513
tire1594
attire1610
greenth1753
eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) iii. viii. 180 Þære stowe grennis & fægernis.
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Hatton 115) xxi. 201 Se engel me lædde þærrihte..into anre byrig, þærbinnan wæs swyðe smeðe feld and brad, mid blowendum wyrtum and grennysse eal afylled.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. ix. xxxii. 549 [Pentecost is a] tyme of mirthe and of grennes for namely þanne herbis beþ grene.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 8034 Passed war a thusand yere, Sin þai war planted in þat place, In grenes ai wit godds grace.
1561 T. Norton tr. J. Calvin Inst. Christian Relig. (1634) i. xvi. 82 Out of seeds warmed in the bosome of the grounde, he draweth a budding greennesse.
1587 T. Newton tr. L. Lemnius Herbal for Bible xxi. 122 The slips thereof [sc. of aloes] being brought to vs out of Spaine..will continue two yeeres in their..gallant greenenes, without being watered.
1634 T. Herbert Relation Some Yeares Trauaile 209 Here is store of box trees, whose growth and greennesse, affoord profit and delight.
1690 W. Temple Ess. Gardens of Epicurus 15 in Miscellanea: 2nd Pt. There are..two things..that contribute much to the Beauty and Elegance of our Gardens, which are the Gravel of our Walks, and the fineness and almost perpetual Greenness of our Turf.
1712 J. James tr. A.-J. Dézallier d'Argenville Theory & Pract. Gardening v. 143 The Ash is the meanest of all these Trees;..the little Greenness it affords, and its unwholsome Shade, makes it seldom used in Gardens.
1757 E. Burke Philos. Enq. Sublime & Beautiful v. §5. 179 The greenness of the fields, the ripening of the fruits, and the warmth of the air.
1823 C. Lamb New Year's Eve in Elia 67 Sun and sky..and the greenness of fields.
1826 W. Cobbett Rural Rides in Cobbett's Weekly Polit. Reg. 14 Oct. 164 There never yet was a summer..when the downs did not retain their greenness to a certain degree.
1878 H. B. Stowe Poganuc People xvii. 147 The honest, great green leaves of the old skunk cabbage, most refreshing to the eye in its hardy, succulent greenness, though an abomination to the nose.
1917 B.E.F. Times 8 Sept. in Wipers Times: Compl. Series (2006) 221/1 The trampled sward whose greenness was here and there besmirched with an ever crimsoning crimson.
1980 M. Shoard Theft of Countryside iii. xii. 129 He would climb up through the cool greenness of a beech wood hanging on the steep northern slope.
2002 C. Alexander Personal States vi. 127 The Ankara factory displays areas of astonishing greenness: lush lawns, clipped hedges, tree-lined avenues, and colourful flowerbeds.
b. Unripeness in fruit, grain, etc. Cf. green adj. 5.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > by age or cycles > [noun] > state of being or becoming ripe or mature > unripeness
greennessc1450
crudity1707
unripeness1783
the world > food and drink > food > fruit and vegetables > [noun] > quality of being unripe
greennessc1450
c1450 Contin. Lydgate's Secrees (Sloane 2464) l. 1942 Looke they be rype and of good swetnesse, Strong in substance no grennesse let be sene.
1634 T. Herbert Relation Some Yeares Trauaile 183 Bananas or Plantanes..they will ripen though you first plucke them in their greenesse.
1719 G. London & H. Wise J. de la Quintinie's Compl. Gard'ner (ed. 7) 161 Care must be had not to uncover them till they have attain'd their proper size, and begin to lose the great Greenness they had.
1779 Gen. Dict. Husb. II. at Malt The condition of the barley, as to its greenness or ripeness, at the time of its being gathered in, is clearly discernable.
1831 C. Mackenzie Five Thousand Receipts (new ed.) 123/1 The time of a vinous fermentation commencing is always uncertain; it depends..most particularly on the greenness or ripeness of the fruit.
1873 Arthur's Home Mag. 41 331/1 Nor do a newly-wedded pair..suggest anything to me but the greenness, rawness and insipidity of unripe fruit which may or may not mature into something rich, generous, sweet and wholesome.
1901 School Rev. June 356 The very greenness of the apple is a part of its necessary development. No apple ever ripened without it.
1926 Pop. Sci. Monthly Feb. 51/2 This record tells the ripeness or greenness of the fruit.
1956 Econ. Bot. 10 284/1 In addition to the ripeness or greenness of the fruit which affects the ascorbic acid content, the time of year also affects the amount of vitamin C in the fruit.
2005 Dict. Food Sci. & Technol. at Degreening A ripening disorder characterized by either partial or delayed yellowing or by permanent greenness after treatment with exogenous ethylene.
2. Green colour of things other than plants, as the sea, precious stones, clothing, etc. Also: an instance or variety of this. Cf. green adj. 1b.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > green or greenness > [noun]
greennessOE
green?c1225
greenheada1325
greenshipc1390
verdurec1400
viridityc1430
sinople1489
flourish1594
deep green1601
verdour1610
verdancy1631
verdue1641
zinnober green1879
vernality1896
virescence1904
verd1915
OE Aldhelm Glosses (Brussels 1650) in L. Goossens Old Eng. Glosses of MS Brussels, Royal Libr. 1650 (1974) 187 [Pavonis pennae pulchritudo] glauco coloris uirore fulgescit : blæhæwenre hiwes uel bleos grennysse glite[naþ].
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvi. lxviii. 859 Marbelle hatte marmor and haþ þat name of Grekes for greenesse [L. a viriditate vocatur], as Isider seiþ.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 9987 Þe grennes lastand euer in an [Fairf., Gött., Trin. Cambr. ay] Bitakens end o þat maiden.
a1450 in J. Evans & M. S. Serjeantson Eng. Mediaeval Lapidaries (1933) 20 (MED) Emeraude passeth all þe grenesses of grenehed.
1561 J. Daus tr. H. Bullinger Hundred Serm. vpon Apocalips xxiii. 142 Grenes signifieth the perpetuitie of God, and that he quickeneth and kepeth in life all thinges.
1598 A. M. tr. J. Guillemeau Frenche Chirurg. 29/2 Ther remayneth somtimes a viriditye or greenes about the apertione.
1628 J. Jackson Ecclesiastes x. 45 Pliny who seemes to have had an exact knowledge of the Berill, after hee hath reckoned up seven distinct kinds, saith, Those are the best which imitate the greennesse of pure Sea-water.
1661 R. Lovell Πανζωορυκτολογια, sive Panzoologicomineralogia 259 When they bite, there followeth great..greennesse or blacknesse of the wound.
1700 T. Emes Let. to Gentleman concerning Alkali & Acid 38 The Chyle not appearing ting'd with Greenness, nor Milk yielding any such fixt Salt, are indications that the Gall is carried down with the rest of the Excrements, but not mix'd with the Chyle.
1756 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. I. 187 The contrast of the white foam, with the natural greenness of the water, has a charming effect.
1824 M. R. Mitford Our Village I. 226 She used to accuse my French greys of blueness..and my greens of their greenness.
1871 J. Tyndall Fragm. Sci. (1879) I. vi. 226 The greenness of the sea is physically connected with the matter which it holds in suspension.
1883 M. Oliphant Hester ix. 146 Overhead the sky ascended in varying tints of daffodil and faint ethereal greenness up to the deep yet bright summer blue.
1929 J. Buchan Courts of Morning ii. i. 155 The tropic dawn broadened fast..greenness broke through the monotint.
1975 D. Hammett in K. McCauley et al. Nightmare Town (1999) 366 Her low-cut green gown..brought out the greenness of her narrowly lanceolate eyes.
2006 N.Y. Mag. 26 June 77/1 High-handed waiters, absurdist prices, the creepy greenness of the green shrimp.
3. Vigour or freshness of growth; vitality. Also figurative. Cf. green adj. 9. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [noun]
greennesseOE
lustinessc1325
forcea1375
vigourc1386
virrc1575
vigour1602
nerve1605
vivacity1649
vis1650
actuosity1660
amenity1661
vogue1674
energy1783
smeddum1790
dash1796
throughput1808
feck1811
go1825
steam1826
jism1842
vim1843
animalism1848
fizz1856
jasm1860
verve1863
snap1865
sawdusta1873
élan1880
stingo1885
energeticism1891
sprawl1894
zip1899
pep1908
jazz1912
zoom1926
toe1963
zap1968
stank1997
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xlvii. 359 Ælc ðara ðe hine mid unryhte ascadan wille from ðære geðwærnesse, he wile forlætan ðære lufan grennisse, & forsearian on ðære ungeðwærnesse.
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxi. 349 Gærs & treowa lybbað buton felnysse: hi ne lybbað na þurh sawle, ac þurh heora grennysse.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. ii. 894 Of þe grounde þe herbe haþ grenenesse in roote and susteynynge of þe stalk.
c1429 Mirour Mans Saluacioune (1986) l. 1081 In Aarons ȝerde we fynde of braunches the grennesse..So is in Marie fonden euer grene virginitee.
a1475 (?a1430) J. Lydgate tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Life Man (Vitell.) l. 24780 (MED) Deth..wil abatyn with his sythe thy grenesse.
1611 J. Speed Hist. Great Brit. ix. xii. 587/1 He seemed to forget..the searnesse of his bodie, and the greennesse of his Grand-Child yong Richard.
a1649 W. Drummond Wks. (1711) 53/1 With fragrant Greenness of thy Grace Our blasted Souls of Wounds release.
a1674 T. Traherne Christian Ethicks (1675) App. 561 Enmities and Disgraces..fall like Storms and Showers upon budding Vertues in their spring and greeness.
a1716 R. South Serm. Several Occasions (1744) X. 44 The hypocrite's hope..for a while gives growth and greenness to his comforts.
1800 ‘A. Pasquin’ Satires & Biogr. 36 If ever I forget thy recent kindness, May black Perdition strike me dark with blindness, May heaven suppress the greenness of my youth.
1843 Peter Parley's Ann. 249 The affection of a child gives a greenness to old age.
1907 Friend 8 Dec. 170/2 Old age here is but renewed youthfulness, for his [sc. Christ's] presence doth keep in greenness.
4. In extended use.† c. gen. Unformedness, crudeness. Cf. green adj. 8a. Obsolete.
a. Immaturity, tenderness (of age).
ΘΚΠ
the world > people > person > young person > [noun] > young and inexperienced person > immaturity of young person
greenness?c1425
unripenessa1500
greenhead1588
coltishnessa1657
callowness1817
cubbishness1828
vealiness1895
preppiness1977
?c1425 (c1412) T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum (Royal 17 D.vi) (1860) 35 In grenesse Of youthe.
1557 Earl of Surrey et al. Songes & Sonettes sig. U.iiii The grenes of my youth cannot therof expresse The proces.
1579 G. Fenton tr. F. Guicciardini Hist. Guicciardin i. 18 What with the greennes of his yeares aspiring nowe to xxij.
1631 J. Weever Anc. Funerall Monuments 225 Considering the greennesse of his age.
a1683 Earl of Shaftesbury Some Observ. conc. Regulating of Elections (1689) 13 Why so many, who seem by their greenness to be as yet but a Novelty to the World, should be admitted a place in this Great Council, whilst those of greater Age, Wisdom, and Experience must be excluded, I do not understand.
1700 tr. R. Descartes in E. Howard Remarks New Philos. Des-Cartes ii. 105 Although there is no Man that does not fully convince himself, That Material Things do really Exist, notwithstanding that it has been dubiously render'd by me, in the precedent Discussions, or accounted amongst the Prejudices incident to the Childhood, or Greenness of our Years; it is now Incumbent, on me, to search for the Reasons that may produce its perfect Intelligence.
1753 T. Smollett Ferdinand Count Fathom I. vi. 31 The greenness of his years secured him from any suspicion of fallacious aim.
1762 A. Murphy Ess. Johnson 14 in H. Fielding Wks. (1771) I Considering the greenness of his years, the sensibility of his temper, and the warmth of his imagination.
1839 Yale Lit. Mag. Feb. 168 He was in the greenness of his age, having seen but little more than twenty-three years.
1886 R. F. Burton tr. Arabian Nights' Entertainm. (Lady Burton's ed.) I. 388 I spared thee..on the second count because of thy weakliness and the greenness of thy years and thy strangerhood.
1981 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 16 Apr. c20 Young actors cast as older characters..compensate for the greenness of their years with effusive gestures and raised voices.
b. Rawness, inexperience; (also) naivety, gullibility. Cf. green adj. 8d.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > lack of understanding > weakness of intellect > simplicity, simple-mindedness > [noun]
simplenessa1382
innocencec1385
simplessec1391
simplicityc1450
innocencya1513
simplehead1543
greenness1548
insipidity1603
seeliness1642
niaiserie1657
silliness1736
simpletonism1825
simple-mindedness1827
simpletonianism1848
noodleness1931
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > want of knowledge, ignorance > unfamiliarity with, inexperience > [noun]
unwitc1175
uncunningnessa1325
uncunninghead1340
uncunningshipa1400
rawness1548
unskill1565
disacquaintance1589
inexperience1595
inacquaintance1597
unacquaintance1598
unaccustomedness1611
unacquaintednessa1617
illiteracy1660
greenness1740
griffinishness1850
unfamiliarity1880
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Mark iv. f. 26–9 The grenenes of innocencie.
1740 W. Pardon Dyche's New Gen. Eng. Dict. (ed. 3) Greenness..also the rawness, unskilfulness, or imperfection of any person in a trade, art, science, &c.
1792 W. Smith Patriot 3 Here you shall find the Forcing-house where the whimsical varieties of inexperienced greenness, grow and flourish.
1838 J. Grant Sketches London vi. 205 Instances of perfect simplicity or ‘greenness’.
1851 T. De Quincey Sketch from Childhood in Hogg's Instructor New Ser. 6 234/2 I had an opportunity of displaying my exemplary greenness.
a1862 H. D. Thoreau Maine Woods (1864) i. 13 A Province man was betraying his greenness to the Yankees by his questions.
1875 L. F. Tasistro tr. Comte de Paris Hist. Civil War Amer. I. 228 When McDowell alleged the greenness of his troops, as they say in English.
1896 Argosy Mar. 538/1 They are either all greenness or all cunning.
1917 A. Cahan Rise of David Levinsky (1993) v. iii. 105 My plan of campaign was to peddle in the streets for a few weeks—that is, until my ‘greenness’ should wear off—and then to try to sell goods to tenement housewives.
1988 W. Berry Remembering i. 20 The work had been complicated..by the youth and greenness of the boys.
1996 F. Popcorn & L. Marigold Clicking ii. 160 Supervisors reported that women were..less prone to hide their greenness, more willing to ask directions and take instruction.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > undertaking > preparation > unpreparedness > [noun] > unreadiness or immaturity
rawnessOE
unripenessa1500
crudeness1541
greenness1574
immaturity1593
indigestion1630
rudeness1645
immatureness1665
inchoateness1845
crudity1870
inchoacy1871
rudimentariness1885
1574 J. Studley tr. J. Bale Pageant of Popes 37 Antichrist as it were appearing aboue the grounde: who grewe still forwarde from grenenesse to ripenesse.
1617 J. Hales Serm. Oxf. 18 If..St. Paul required diligent reading, & expresly forbad greennesse of schollarship.
1641 J. Milton Of Reformation 15 The greennesse of the Times, the weake Estate which Qu. Mary left the Realme in.
1856 H. Conant Eng. Bible xviii. 385 The Prelates were seeking to conceal the greenness of their new church from the popular eye under this garb of antiquity.
1875 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) V. 148 The greenness of our argument will ludicrously contrast with the ripeness of our ages.
d. With reference to a horse: the state or condition of being undertrained. See green adj. 8c.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > family Equidae (general equines) > temperament > [noun] > not domesticated or broken in > lack of training
greenness1900
the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > family Equidae (general equines) > horse defined by purpose used for > [noun] > racehorse > with particular qualities or faults > qualities or faults of
stoutness1818
greenness1900
1900 Daily Mail 30 Apr. 4/3 They were due to the greenness of many of the horses, to the fact that they were not acclimatised.
1927 Daily Mail 30 June 13 The failure of Mrs. Whitburn's colt at Ascot may have been due to greenness.
1994 Sporting Life 28 Oct. 22/1 Stelvio..overcame obvious greenness to stride home by three and a half lengths.
2004 Eventing Oct. 25/1 Her greenness did show through in the show jumping, though, where she clocked up too many time faults.
5. † b. The condition of having recently given birth. Cf. green adj. 7c. Obsolete. rare.
a. Freshness; newness. Now somewhat rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > relative time > the future or time to come > newness or novelty > [noun] > newness, freshness, or originality
noveltya1398
greenness1544
nap1591
verd1603
virginity1639
originalness1727
originality1782
freshness1807
verdurousness1856
unhackneyedness1884
1544 R. Morison tr. J. L. Vives Introd. Wysedome (new ed.) sig. Aiiv The seconde ladye..is Thalia, whiche sygnifieth fresshenes or greenenesse, bycause dutie and honestie woll, all pleasures, all benefites styll to be fresshe in memory, styll to be greene.
1553 J. Brende tr. Q. Curtius Rufus Hist. iv. f. 67 Through the grenesse of their woundes they felt litle payne.
1600 R. Surflet tr. C. Estienne & J. Liébault Maison Rustique vi. xxii. 791 There is great difference betwixt that tartnes or sowrenes which is an accidentall vice or fault in wines, & that greenenes or sharpenes which is a natural tast and relish in them.
1638 W. Rawley tr. F. Bacon Hist. Nat. & Exper. Life & Death 32 This..preserves them [sc. Grains] also in that Greennesse, that they are fit, and serviceable to make Bread.
1677 F. Bampfield All in One 109 When Herbs wax pale, wan and withered, much of their Virtue is lost, as to some purposes, their greenness and moistness being gone.
1749 J. Cleland Mem. Woman of Pleasure II. 149 From some of the cuts I pick'd out even the splinters of the rod, that had stuck in the skin: nor was this raw work to be wonder'd at, considering the greenness of the twigs.
1854 B. Disraeli in A. C. Ewald Earl of Beaconsfield & his Times (1881) I. xii. 305 But we can hardly hope now, in the greenness of the wound, that even these reflections can serve as a source of solace.
1882 H. Vizetelly Hist. Champagne i. iii. 41 Others ascribed it to the greenness of the wine, because most of that which effervesced was extremely raw.
1954 Huntly Express 19 Nov. In a very few days the milk will be fit for drinking... The ‘greenness’ soon wears off.
1961 J. Fitchen Constr. Gothic Cathedrals App. G. 263 The long-continuing greenness of the mortar.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > source or principle of life > birth > confinement > [noun] > childbirth or delivery > condition of being fresh from
greenness1624
1624 T. Heywood Γυναικεῖον iv. 169 Canace by reason of her greenenes and weake estate, not able to make her escape.
6. Of a person or group: the quality or condition of being ecologically aware or committed to environmental conservation. Of a product, service, etc.: the fact or quality of being environmentally friendly. Cf. green adj. 13.
ΚΠ
1983 Observer 1 May 3/3 ‘Greenness’ is, as well as an attempt to counterpose non-materialistic, non-exploitative, non-destructive alternatives against the dominant ethic, a religion for a secular age.
1989 Brit. Business 18 Aug. 18/2 Recent months have seen a marked increase in the marketing of products on the basis of their ‘greenness’, with many major retail outlets emphasising the environmental theme.
1991 Green Mag. Feb. 23/1 After your carrots are pesticide-free, your eggs are free range and you're seen chauffeuring sacks of newspapers to the collection points..the repercussions of going to the next stages of Greenness are just plain numbing.
2008 G. Croston 75 Green Businesses ix. 251 The greenness is not just what is stocked in the store or served at the restaurant, but runs deep into the efficiency of buildings, how products are made, how they are shipped.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2011; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
<
n.eOE- catered
- caterer
- caterers
- caterership
- cateress
- cateresses
- catering
- caterings
- caterpillar
- caterpillar lorry
- caterpillar shrike
- caterpillar shroud
- caterpillar tank
- caterpillar tractor
- caterpillar wheel
- caterpillar-catcher
- caterpillar-eater
- caterpillar-fly
- caterpillar-like
- caterpillar-plant
- caterpillar-wheeled
- caterpillarcatcher
- caterpillareater
- caterpillared
- caterpillarfly