balkiness en · NOUN
Etymology
Etymology tree English balky Proto-Germanic *-inōną Proto-Indo-European *-dyé- Proto-Germanic *-atjaną Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Germanic *-þuz Proto-Germanic *-assuz Proto-Germanic *-inassuz Proto-West Germanic *-nassī Old English -nes Middle English -nesse English -ness English balkiness From balky + -ness.
Meanings
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(uncountable) The state or quality of being balky or uncooperative.
[…] he was mildly annoyed to find that the chair shifted itself—remote control over objects was a labor-saver and probably a money-saver […] and obviously to be preferred to the blind balkiness of mechanical gadgets. Nevertheless Jubal was not used to telecontrol done without wires or waves […]
1961, Robert A. Heinlein, chapter 36, in Stranger in a Strange Land, New York: Avon, →OCLC, page 391: