Barbedness

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The quality or state of having sharp, pointed projections that can pierce or cause injury
2. A characteristic of being thorny or spiked, often implying a defensive or aggressive feature
3. The condition of possessing barbs, typically used to describe objects or traits that are rough or unwelcoming

Etymology: "Barbedness" is a plain formation: the adjective "barbed" with the suffix "-ness", which turns a quality into a noun. "Barbed" describes anything fitted with barbs, the backward-pointing hooks that make a wire or arrow hard to pull out once it has gone in. The suffix "-ness" is an old, productive English ending, attached to native adjectives since Old English, so the noun simply names the state of being barbed. The sense of "sharp pointed quality" follows the same path as the adjective, which began with the literal hooked point of a weapon or fishing hook and was then carried over to sharp, cutting remarks. "Barbedness" therefore tends to be used in that figurative way, for a sting in someone's words or wit as much as for a physical point.