Peripheralness

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The characteristic of being located at the outer limits or edge is associated with being of lesser importance or relevance while also pertaining to the outer regions of a given context
2. The state of existing at the boundaries or outer sides often implies a secondary role or lesser significance in relation to the main subject, as well as a connection to the outer areas of an entity
3. The quality of lying at or near the outer edge of something ; the condition of being regarded as less central or significant

Etymology: "Peripheralness" is a plain English formation: the adjective "peripheral" with the suffix "-ness" attached, which turns an adjective into a noun meaning "the quality or state of being" that adjective describes. It is one of many such nouns built from adjectives in English, and its meaning follows directly from its parts. "Peripheral" itself comes from the Greek "periphereia," a compound of "peri-" ("around") and "pherein" ("to carry" or "to bear"), originally a term for a circumference or outer boundary. That sense of a line running around the outside of something is what carries into the noun. Because the noun is a regular derivative, the word is best understood as the outward edge of a thing, with "peripheralness" naming the condition of lying on that edge rather than at the center.