[syn: purity, pureness, sinlessness, innocence, whiteness]
3. lightness or fairness of complexion;
- Example: "only the whiteness of her cheeks gave any indication of the stress from which she was suffering"
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Whiteness \White"ness\, n. [AS. hw[imac]tness.]
1. The quality or state of being white; white color, or
freedom from darkness or obscurity on the surface.
--Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]
2. Want of a sanguineous tinge; paleness; as from terror,
grief, etc. "The whiteness in thy cheek." --Shak.
[1913 Webster]
3. Freedom from stain or blemish; purity; cleanness.
[1913 Webster]
He had kept
The whiteness of his soul, and thus men o'er him
wept. --Byron.
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4. Nakedness. [Obs.] --Chapman.
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5. (Zool.) A flock of swans.
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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
whiteness
n 1: the quality or state of the achromatic color of greatest
lightness (bearing the least resemblance to black) [syn:
white, whiteness] [ant: black, blackness,
inkiness]
2: the state of being unsullied by sin or moral wrong; lacking a
knowledge of evil [syn: purity, pureness, sinlessness,
innocence, whiteness]
3: lightness or fairness of complexion; "only the whiteness of
her cheeks gave any indication of the stress from which she
was suffering"