mustiness en · NOUN
Pronunciation
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Etymology
Etymology tree English musty 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 mustiness From musty + -ness.
Meanings
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(countable, uncountable) The characteristic of being musty.
But during those two years for some reason or other the house had fallen into premature and rapid decay. With a very few months an air of mustiness began to hang over the once palatial residence of the rich foreign financier.
1933, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], chapter I, in The Way of the Scarlet Pimpernel, New York, N.Y.: G[eorge] P[almer] Putnam’s Sons, published 1934, →OCLC, page 1:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| mustinesses | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Translations (2)
de Moder (stale or moldy in odor or taste) · de Muffigkeit (stale or moldy in odor or taste)