BADNESS

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does badness mean? 

• BADNESS (noun)
  The noun BADNESS has 3 senses:

1. that which is below standard or expectations as of ethics or decency

2. used of the degree of something undesirable e.g. pain or weather

3. an attribute of mischievous children

  Familiarity information: BADNESS used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BADNESS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

That which is below standard or expectations as of ethics or decency

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

bad; badness

Context example:

take the bad with the good

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

quality (an essential and distinguishing attribute of something or someone)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "badness"):

unworthiness (the quality or state of lacking merit or value)

undesirability (the quality possessed by something that should be avoided)

worse (something inferior in quality or condition or effect)

evil (that which causes harm or destruction or misfortune)

unsoundness (not mentally or physically healthy)

liability (the quality of being something that holds you back)

inadvisability (the quality of being ill-advised)

Antonym:

goodness (that which is pleasing or valuable or useful)

Derivation:

bad (having undesirable or negative qualities)

bad (characterized by wickedness or immorality)

bad (below average in quality or performance)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Used of the degree of something undesirable e.g. pain or weather

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

badness; severeness; severity

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

intensity; intensiveness (high level or degree; the property of being intense)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "badness"):

foulness; raininess ((of weather) the badness of the weather)

distressfulness; seriousness (the quality of arousing fear or distress)

Derivation:

bad (feeling physical discomfort or pain ('tough' is occasionally used colloquially for 'bad'))

bad (very intense)

Sense 3

Meaning:

An attribute of mischievous children

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

badness; mischievousness; naughtiness

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

disobedience (the trait of being unwilling to obey)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "badness"):

prankishness; rascality; roguishness (the trait of indulging in disreputable pranks)

 Context examples 

It was her public place: there she met her acquaintance, heard a little news, talked over the badness of the Portsmouth servants, and wound up her spirits for the six days ensuing.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

Still farther in confirmation of her hopes, in the interval of Marianne's turning from one lesson to another, some words of the Colonel's inevitably reached her ear, in which he seemed to be apologising for the badness of his house.

(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)