Use the suffix ~NESS to increase your English vocabulary (Fast)

The suffix –ness means state (condition) or quality. Words (usually adjectives) with the suffix ness become nouns that mean – Having the quality of the root word. – The noun happiness is the quality of being happy. Fitness is the quality of being fit.

The suffix ~NESS Meaning

The suffix -NESS means – the quality, state, or character of
ness suffix – Definition, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary
When you add the suffix to the end of adjectives the new word will become a noun that means having the quality of the adjectives.

Suffix ~ness examples

Adjective	+ ness = noun	Example sentences
kind	kindness – the quality of being kind	Thank you for your kindness.
happy	happiness – the quality of being happy	I wish you lots of love and happiness.
dry	dryness – the quality of being dry	This medicine may cause dryness of the mouth.
silly	silliness –  the quality of being silly	I’ve tolerated your silliness long enough.
blind	blindness – the quality of being blind	Drinking wood alcohol may cause blindness.
dark	darkness –  the quality of being dark	Darkness is falling, we should get home.
aware	awareness – the quality of being aware	Airport security needs a high level of awareness to be good at their job.
ill	illness –  the quality of being ill	I missed a lot of school because of illness last year.
fit	fitness – the quality of being fit	I’m strong but I’d like to improve my fitness.

• Suffix ~ness example table image
• Suffix ~ness worksheet
• Suffix ~ness spelling note
• Suffix ~ness infographic

“After a great dinner and coffee, I thanked my host for his kindness and went home.” = I really appreciated how kind my host was. Kind is an adjective, kindness is a noun.

“Airport security needs a high level of awareness to be good at their job.” = Security needs to be very aware so they can notice anything suspicious or strange. Aware is an adjective, awareness is a noun.

“As it got late the darkness spread across the land…” = It became dark. Dark is an adjective, darkness is a noun.

Suffix ~ness spelling note

If a two-syllable adjective ends in the letter Y, the Y will change into an I before adding NESS.

• happy – happiness
• friendly – friendliness
• busy – business
• lonely loneliness 

Three letter adjectives ending in Y don’t often change to an I.

• shy – shyness
• sly – slyness 

It’s common to see adjectives written as nouns with the suffix ~ness on medicine labels listing the side effects

• This medicine may cause dryness of the mouth.
• These pills may cause drowsiness.
• Patients may experience bloating and gassiness. 

Suffix ~ness example table image

Suffix ~ness worksheet

Suffix ~NESS Infographic