unspeakableness

English

Etymology

Etymology tree

English unspeakable

Proto-Germanic *-in-

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂

Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂

Proto-Indo-European *-yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ti

Proto-Germanic *-ōną

Proto-Germanic *-inōną

Proto-Indo-European *-dyé-

Proto-Germanic *-atjaną

Proto-Indo-European *-tus

Proto-Germanic *-þuz

Proto-Germanic *-assuz

Proto-Germanic *-inassuz

Proto-West Germanic *-nassī

Old English -nes

Middle English -nesse

English -ness

English unspeakableness

From unspeakable + -ness.

Noun

unspeakableness (uncountable)

1. The condition or quality of being unspeakable.
   • 2007 January 27, Paul Berton, “How do we define gruesome? (editorial)”, in London Free Press, Canada:

     Obviously, it's the unspeakableness, the sheer horror of it, that is motivating some news organizations.

References

• Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., 1989. See "unspeakable."