Obviousness

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈɒ(b)viəsnɪs/

Definitions

1. The quality of being clearly apparent or readily understood by anyone encountering it
2. The state of something being easily noticed and comprehended due to its clarity and simplicity
3. A characteristic where ideas or facts are plainly evident without requiring explanation or proof

Etymology: "Obviousness" is a plain English formation: the adjective "obvious" with the suffix "-ness," which turns an adjective into a noun naming a quality. The suffix has a long pedigree of its own. It descends from Old English "-nes," which in turn goes back to a Germanic noun-forming ending, and that ending passed through Middle English "-nesse" into the modern form. "Obvious" is the older and more interesting half of the pair. It was borrowed from Latin "obvius," meaning "in the way," built from "ob" ("in the way of, against") and "via" ("road"). Its earliest sense was literal: something lying across your path, impossible to miss. The move from a physical obstacle to a matter that is plain to the mind is what makes the adjective, and so the noun built on it, carry the idea of something that cannot be overlooked.

Synonyms: evidentness, clarity, manifestness

Antonyms: ambiguity, obscurity, uncertainty