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The Collaborative International Dictionary
Plainness

Plainness \Plain"ness\, n. The quality or state of being plain.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
plainness

c.1300, "flatness," from plain (adj.) + -ness. Meaning "clarity" is mid-15c.; that of "open conduct" is from 1540s; that of "absence of ornament" is from 1580s.

Wiktionary
plainness

n. 1 (context uncountable English) The condition of being plain (in all senses) 2 (context countable English) The product or result of being plain

WordNet
plainness
  1. n. the state of being unmixed with other material; "the plainness of vanilla ice cream"

  2. clarity as a consequence of being perspicuous [syn: perspicuity, perspicuousness]

  3. the appearance of being plain and unpretentious

  4. an appearance that is not attractive or beautiful; "fine clothes could not conceal the girl's homeliness" [syn: homeliness]

Usage examples of "plainness".

Full of admiration, I addressed myself to her alone, and all her plainness vanished.

There was something ascetic in her look, which was augmented by the extreme plainness of a straight-skirted, black, stuff dress, a starched linen collar, hair combed away from the temples, and the nun-like ornament of a string of ebony beads and a crucifix.

They were expecting Marya Dmitrievna Akhrosimova, known in society as le terrible dragon, a lady distinguished not for wealth or rank, but for common sense and frank plainness of speech.

In spite of her age and plainness she had gone through the same process as the Rostovs, but with less flurry- for to her it was a matter of routine.

At the card table he happened to be directly facing Natasha, and was struck by a curious change that had come over her since the ball, She was silent, and not only less pretty than at the ball, but only redeemed from plainness by her look of gentle indifference to everything around.

Princess Mary noticed this and glanced gratefully at him with that radiant look which caused the plainness of her face to be forgotten.

Larissa was a bony woman whose plainness almost overcame Aes Sedai agelessness, Zenare slightly plump and haughty enough for two queens, but both wore faces of eager anticipation.

A few of the Wise Ones were inside the wagons as well, in bulky skirts and white blouses, wearing their dark shawls in defiance of the heat, glittering bracelets and necklaces of gold and ivory making up for the plainness of the rest of their clothes.

There swept over me a sense of my own exceeding plainness, and of how little there was in what those dear eyes saw, to provide reason, for that adoring look.

Murry's flaming red hair, creamy skin, and violet eyes with long dark lashes, seemed even more spectacular in comparison with Meg's outrageous plainness.