inwardness
Americannoun
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the state of being inward or internal.
the inwardness of the body's organs.
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depth of thought or feeling; concern with one's own affairs and oneself; introspection.
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preoccupation with what concerns human inner nature; spirituality.
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the fundamental or intrinsic character of something; essence.
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inner meaning or significance.
Etymology
Origin of inwardness
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Martin Luther’s personal spiritual struggles brought St. Paul’s inwardness to its fullest expression; after Luther, Mr. Persico writes, “God no longer resided in the heavens, but in the human heart.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 24, 2025
Herman Melville in particular — one of the “great explorers of inwardness, mystery and the inexplicable” — became a companion spirit, traveling some of the same paths as Iyer.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 9, 2023
It explores the tension between the inwardness of Romantic philosophy and the ethical or political aspirations of its practitioners, nearly all of whom supported the French Revolution.
From Washington Post • Sep. 22, 2022
He has no inwardness, only an obsession: the costly and elaborate re-enactment of half-remembered scenes from his past.
From New York Times • Nov. 2, 2021
Obinze, with his air of calm and inwardness, made it even more intriguing.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
