Foolhardynesse

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The quality of rashly taking risks without regard for the danger involved, a reckless boldness that ignores obvious peril
2. Reckless daring that charges ahead heedlessly despite the clear hazards, a willingness to court disaster out of misplaced courage
3. The trait of being recklessly bold and careless of danger, an impulsive readiness to face perils that a sensible person would avoid

Etymology: "Foolhardynesse" is a Middle English noun meaning rash, reckless boldness, and it was built from "foolhardy" plus the suffix "-nesse," an older form of "-ness" that turns an adjective into a noun of quality. "Foolhardy" itself was formed by joining "fool" with "hardy," the latter in its old sense of bold or daring, so the compound already sounded contradictory: a fool who is brave. Words of this kind were common in Middle English, when writers freely combined a noun or adjective with a quality suffix to name a state of mind. The spelling with a final "-e" and "-nesse" reflects the Middle English period, when many nouns still carried endings that later disappeared from English. The word was never a standard everyday term, and it is now archaic, surviving mainly in older literature and in discussions of historical vocabulary. Its interest lies in how transparently it is put together: a reader can see both halves at once, which is why the word needs no further explanation to be understood.

Synonyms: recklessness, rashness, temerity, audacity, imprudence

Antonyms: caution, prudence, wariness, timidity, carefulness