goodness

English

Etymology

FromMiddle Englishgoodnesse,godnesse,fromOld Englishgōdnes(“goodness; virtue; kindness”),fromProto-West Germanic*gōdnassī(“goodness”),equivalent togood+‎-ness.Cognate withScotsguidness(“goodness”),West Frisiangoedens(“goodness”),Old High Germanguotnessī(“goodness”),Middle High Germanguotnisse(“goodness”),Russianгодность(godnostʹ,“suitability, fitness”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ˈɡʊdnəs/,/ˈɡʊdnɪs/

• Audio(US):

  (file)

Noun

goodness(countableanduncountable,pluralgoodnesses)

1. (uncountable)The state or characteristic of beinggood.
   • 1599(date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life of Henry the Fift”,inMr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies[…](First Folio), London:[…]Isaac Iaggard,andEd[ward]Blount,published1623,→OCLC,[Act IV, scene i],page83,column 2:

     There is ſome ſoule ofgoodneſſein things euill, / VVould men obſeruingly 'diſtill it out.

   • 2014October 7, Amanda Bevill, Julie Kramis Hearne,World Spice at Home: New Flavors for 75 Favorite Dishes‎^[1],Sasquatch Books,→ISBN,page42:

     Rich, raisiny, smoky, coffeegoodness:that is the flavor of urfa biber.

2. (countable)The good,nutritional,healthypart or content of something.
3. (uncountable,euphemistic)God.

   Thankgoodnessthat the war is over!

4. (Christianity)Themoralqualities which constitute Christian excellence; moralvirtue.
   • 1611,The Holy Bible,[…](King James Version), London:[…]Robert Barker,[…],→OCLC,Galatians5:22–23,column 2:

     But the fruit of the ſpirit is loue, ioy, peace, long ſuffering, gentleneſſe,goodneſſe,faith, / Meekeneſſe, temperance: againſt ſuch there is no law.

Synonyms

• SeeThesaurus:goodness

Derived terms

• goodness gracious
• goodness gracious me
• goodness knows
• goodness me
• honest to goodness
• honest-to-goodness
• my goodness
• oh my goodness
• oh my goodness gracious
• out of the goodness of one's heart
• thank goodness

Translations

state or characteristic of being good

• Albanian:mirësi(sq)f
• Arabic:خَيْرm(ḵayr)

  Hijazi Arabic:خيرm(ḵēr)

• Armenian:please add this translation if you can
• Aromanian:bunãtatif
• Asturian:bondáf
• Bulgarian:добрина(bg)f(dobrina),доброта(bg)f(dobrota)
• Catalan:bondat(ca)f,bonesaf
• Choctaw:achukma
• Czech:dobrota(cs)f
• Dutch:goedheid(nl)f
• Esperanto:boneco(eo)
• Finnish:hyvyys(fi)
• French:bonté(fr)f

  Old French:bontéf

• Friulian:bontâtf
• Galician:bondade(gl)f
• Georgian:please add this translation if you can
• German:Güte(de)f,Gütigkeit(de)f,(elevated)Herzensgüte(de)f,Tugend(de)f,Integrität(de)f
• Gothic:𐍃𐌴𐌻𐌴𐌹f(sēlei),𐌲𐍉𐌳𐌴𐌹f(gōdei)
• Greek:καλοσύνη(el)f(kalosýni)

  Ancient:ἀγαθότηςf(agathótēs),ἀγαθοσύνηf(agathosúnē)

• Hebrew:טוֹב(he)m
• Ido:boneso(io)
• Ingrian:hyvvyys
• Irish:maitheasf,maith(ga)f
• Italian:bontà(it)f
• Judeo-Italian:טובזהf(tovezza)
• Khmer:please add this translation if you can
• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish:qencî(ku)f,başî(ku)f

• Lao:please add this translation if you can
• Latin:bonitāsf
• Lithuanian:gerumas,gerumas
• Macedonian:добринаf(dobrina)
• Middle English:goodnesse
• Occitan:bontat(oc)f,bonesaf
• Old High German:guotīf
• Old Occitan:bontatf
• Polish:dobro(pl)n,dobroć(pl)f
• Portuguese:bondade(pt)f
• Romanian:bunătate(ro)
• Russian:доброта́(ru)f(dobrotá)
• Scots:guidness
• Serbo-Croatian:dobrota(sh)f
• Spanish:bondad(es)f
• Swahili:uzuri(sw)
• Swedish:godhet(sv)
• Tagalog:buti
• Tamil:நல்லது(ta)(nallatu)
• Telugu:మంచితనము(te)(mañcitanamu)
• Thai:please add this translation if you can
• Tocharian B:kärtsauñe
• Turkish:iyilik(tr)
• Ugaritic:𐎉𐎁(ṭb)
• Vietnamese:lòng tốt
• Votic:üvüz

good part or content of something

• Arabic:خَيْرm(ḵayr),صَلَاح(ar)m(ṣalāḥ)(righteousness)
• Finnish:hyvä(fi)
• Lithuanian:gera(lt)
• Russian:добро́(ru)n(dobró)

euphemistically: God

• French:bonté divine(fr),corbleu(fr),crebleu(fr),jarnibleu(fr),jarnicoton(fr),maugrebleu(fr),maugrébleu(fr),morbleu(fr),morguienne(fr),nom de Zeus(fr),nom d’un chien(fr),nom d’un petit bonhomme(fr),nom d’une pipe(fr),palsambleu(fr),parbleu(fr),par Jupiter(fr),par Toutatis(fr),rogntudju(fr),sacrebleu(fr),sambleu(fr),scrogneugneu(fr),têtebleu(fr),tubleu(fr),ventrebleu(fr),vertubleu(fr)

Christianity: moral virtue

• Bulgarian:добродетел(bg)f(dobrodetel)
• Finnish:hyvyys(fi)
• Middle English:goodnesse
• Russian:доброде́тель(ru)f(dobrodételʹ)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions atWiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Cebuano:^{(pleaseverify)}kaayo
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish:^{(pleaseverify)}باشی(başî),^{(pleaseverify)}چاکە(çake)

Further reading

• “goodness”,inWebster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary,Springfield, Mass.:G. & C. Merriam,1913,→OCLC.
• “goodness”,inThe Century Dictionary[…],New York, N.Y.:The Century Co.,1911,→OCLC.
• “goodness”,inOneLook Dictionary Search.

Interjection

goodness

1. Short form ofgoodness me.

Anagrams

• dog's nose