lightness

¹

[ lahyt-nis ]

noun

1. the state or quality of being light lights in weight:

   the amazing lightness of the new metal.

2. the quality of being agile, nimble, or graceful.

   Synonyms: sprightliness, nimbleness, grace, agility

3. lack of pressure or burdensomeness.
4. lack of seriousness; levity in actions, thoughts, or speech:

   That kind of lightness seemed out of place.

5. gaiety of manner, speech, style, etc.; cheerfulness:

   His lightness was just what the party needed.

lightness

²

[ lahyt-nis ]

noun

1. the state or quality of being light lights or illuminated.
2. thin or pale coloration.
3. the relative degree to which an object reflects light, lights, especially light lights of complementary or nearly complementary colors.

lightness

/ ˈlaɪtnɪs /

noun

1. See colour
   the attribute of an object or colour that enables an observer to judge the extent to which the object or colour reflects or transmits incident light See also colour

Word History and Origins

Origin of lightness¹

1175–1225; Middle English. See light ², -ness

Origin of lightness²

before 1050; Middle English; Old English līhtness. See light ¹, -ness

Example Sentences

It’s the same feeling of lightness that other women describe when lopping off a head of hair.

From Time

Cabernet’s sleeper region may be Argentina’s Mendoza, where the altitude of the Andes foothills softens the tannins and preserves acidity and lightness in the wine.

From Washington Post

Even Jubilee’s somber tracks are imbued with traces of lightness.

From Vox

Few would dispute that Federer is the game’s most elegant practitioner, wielding his racket like a magic wand and with a dancer’s grace and lightness.

From Washington Post

Next up is redeeming the lightness from that darkness, without indulging the old myths or perpetuating the old inequities.

From Washington Post

The American edition retains the piecemeal lightness of the original experiment.

From The Daily Beast

At the same time, lightness and charm became uncool; darkness and so-called “authenticity” took over.

From The Daily Beast

In a quote usually associated with Bill Stout, designer of the Ford Tri-Motor: “Simplicate and add more lightness.”

From The Daily Beast

With her artful fusion of fact and fiction, Phillips pulls off a rare sense of lightness and grace at the end of the novel.

From The Daily Beast

There was a sense of lightness that was just perfect for Spring.

From The Daily Beast

Don't you remember my telling you that Liszt has an inconceivable lightness, swiftness and smoothness of execution?

From Project Gutenberg

It was to me a new birth of faculties that resembled a new sense of being, a buoyant and elastic lightness of feelings and frame.

From Project Gutenberg

The manufacturers of these pipes claim for them that they combine the strength of steel with the lightness of paper.

From Project Gutenberg

She knew very well that the lightness in her voice had whipped him, and that he was "feeling badly."

From Project Gutenberg

The whole figure had the poise and lightness of a vision; yet in the face an exquisite human tenderness smiled out.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• brightness
• sparkle