Fancinesses

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Conditions of being elaborate, decorative, or luxurious in appearance or style
2. Instances or qualities of sophistication that emphasize attractiveness and elegance
3. Varied manifestations of superficiality or ostentation in fashion or behavior

Etymology: "Fancinesses" is simply the plural of "fanciness," which is the noun formed from "fancy" plus the suffix "-ness." The base word "fancy" is itself a shortening of "fantasy," so the whole chain runs back to a Greek word for appearance or imagination, reached through Old French. The suffix "-ness" is the oldest layer here: it descends from Old English "-nes," a native English device for turning adjectives into abstract nouns, so "fanciness" means literally "the state of being fancy." The suffix has a long pedigree behind it. Its ancestors reach back to Proto-Germanic forms that were attached to adjectives to form abstract nouns, a pattern English has used continuously since Old English. In Middle English the form became "-nesse," and by the modern period it settled into the spelling we use now.