APTNESS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does aptness mean? 

• APTNESS (noun)
  The noun APTNESS has 2 senses:

1. a disposition to behave in a certain way

2. appropriateness for the occasion

  Familiarity information: APTNESS used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• APTNESS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A disposition to behave in a certain way

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

aptness; propensity

Context example:

the propensity of disease to spread

Hypernyms ("aptness" is a kind of...):

disposition (a natural or acquired habit or characteristic tendency in a person or thing)

Derivation:

apt ((usually followed by 'to') naturally disposed toward)

apt (at risk of or subject to experiencing something usually unpleasant)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Appropriateness for the occasion

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

appositeness; aptness

Context example:

the phrase had considerable aptness

Hypernyms ("aptness" is a kind of...):

appropriateness (the quality of being specially suitable)

Antonym:

inaptness (inappropriateness)

Derivation:

apt (being of striking appropriateness and pertinence)

 Context examples 

His friends were those of his own blood or those whom he had known the longest; his affections, like ivy, were the growth of time, they implied no aptness in the object.

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)