Dictionary

gormlessness en · NOUN

Etymology

Etymology tree English gormless 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 gormlessness From gormless + -ness.

Meanings

1. (uncountable) The quality or state of being gormless.
   • Nevertheless he began to feel off colour and when, eventually, the venom reached his brain it had the effect of increasing, rather than alleviating, his gormlessness. 2008, Frank Key, Gravitas, Punctilio, Rectitude & Pippy Bag, page 131:
   • The facial expression can be mask-like, almost frozen in an attitude which may suggest dissatisfaction, surly sulkiness, hatred, resentment, sadness or possibly just general gormlessness. 2012, James Wakely, Mad Or Bad?: A Few Thumbnail Sketches, →ISBN, page 211:
   • One might contend that public perceptions of the gormlessness of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) plus the amateurish conduct of the suspected conspirators might explain [it]. 2009, Uneasy Partners: Multiculturalism and Rights in Canada, →ISBN, page 72:

Forms