Conceitedness

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A personality trait that involves an inflated perception of one’s own capabilities and a strong sense of superiority over others
2. An attitude marked by an overly high opinion of oneself and a belief in personal superiority
3. The quality of having an exaggerated sense of one's own worth or abilities above others

Etymology: "Conceitedness" is simply "conceited" with the suffix "-ness" attached, and the tree shows that "conceited" itself grew from a much older verb. That verb, "conceive," came into Middle English from Old French "concevoir," which descended from Latin "concipere," meaning to take in or receive, and "concipere" was built from "com-" (together) and "capere" (to take). So the root idea is one of holding or taking something in. The surprising turn is how far "conceit" drifted from that sense. "Conceive" once meant to take something into the mind or womb, and the noun "conceit" first meant a thought, notion or idea, with no criticism attached. Only later did it come to mean an excessively high opinion of oneself, and "conceited" followed that shift. "Conceitedness" is the "-ness" form, which attaches to adjectives to name a quality, and it descends from Old English "-nes." It is the abstract noun for the state of being too proud of oneself.

Synonyms: arrogance, vainglory, egoism, pride, self-importance

Antonyms: humility, modesty