Crankinesses

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A state of being irritable or easily annoyed, often resulting in sour moods or complaints
2. Multiple instances of being grumpy or discontented, leading to frequent expressions of dissatisfaction
3. A collection of moments characterized by a short temper or a tendency to fuss over trivial issues

Etymology: "Crankinesses" is simply the plural of "crankiness," so it names several separate spells of grumpiness rather than one mood. The base word, "cranky," is English and fairly recent in its present sense: it is an adjective built on "crank," and its shift toward meaning irritable or ill-tempered is the part that gives the family of words its color. "Crankiness" is formed from "cranky" plus the suffix "-ness," which turns an adjective into a noun for a quality or state. That suffix has a long pedigree in English: it descends from Old English "-nes," which in turn grew out of a Proto-Germanic formation used to make abstract nouns from adjectives. Middle English spelled it "-nesse," and it has been attached freely to new adjectives ever since, so "crankiness" is a straightforward, transparent coinage.