inwardness
[in-werd-nis]
- the state of being inward or internal: the inwardness of the body's organs.
- depth of thought or feeling; concern with one's own affairs and oneself; introspection.
- preoccupation with what concerns human inner nature; spirituality.
- the fundamental or intrinsic character of something; essence.
- inner meaning or significance.
- intimacy.
Show More
Origin of inwardness
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for inwardness
Contemporary Examples
I know that I wanted to be in love, and that my own past, and my own inwardness, made this impossible.
The Stacks: How The Berlin Wall Inspired John le Carré’s First MasterpieceJohn le Carré
November 8, 2014
Throughout, these weighty matters are examined candidly and wistfully, with the wisdom that only age and inwardness can bring.
Historical Examples
She was in the dark as to the inwardness of the word “Shame.”
The Secret AgentJoseph Conrad
But do you know anything about the inwardness of this business on Hue and Cry Island?
Blow The Man DownHolman Day
All present realised something of the inwardness of that to which they had just been listening.
The Day of JudgmentJoseph Hocking
Yet this lesson of inwardness has always been the most difficult of all to learn.
The Expositor's Bible: The Book of ProverbsR. F. Horton
The direction in which German philosophy is profound is the direction of inwardness.
Egotism in German PhilosophyGeorge Santayana
Word Origin and History for inwardness
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper