What does blowziness mean?
Blowiness is a rare noun for the quality of being blowy. Its principal figurative use describes language, behavior, or an apparent style that is inflated, bombastic, or excessively expansive: someone may dismiss a grand announcement as mere blowiness. In this sense, the word implies a contrast between impressive outward display and the substance or proportion actually present. Blowiness can also denote windiness or exposure to strong wind, although this literal application is uncommon. The noun is usually uncountable and generally carries a negative or dismissive connotation when used of speech and conduct. It is related to the adjective blowy, which can itself mean windy or inflated in style. Because the term is dated and uncommon, it is more likely to appear in formal, descriptive, or deliberately critical writing than in everyday conversation.
nounBlowiness is the condition or quality of being blowy. It can refer to windiness or, figuratively, to an inflated, bombastic, or excessively expansive style.
- The quality of being inflated, bombastic, or excessively expansive.
- The state of being windy or exposed to the wind.
"The speaker's blowiness transformed a modest proposal into an elaborate declaration of grand ambitions."
"His blowiness was evident in the grand claims he made for an ordinary achievement."
"The blowiness of the headland made conversation difficult without a sheltered windbreak."
Possible but rarely needed; blowiness is normally treated as an uncountable noun.
"The novel mocks the blowinesses of the fashionably self-important."
Blowiness can describe either an exposed, windy place or a speech inflated with more pomp than substance.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does blowziness come from?
Blowiness was formed in the 19th century from the adjective blowy and the noun-forming suffix -ness. Blowy itself comes from blow plus the suffix -y, and ultimately from Old English blāwan, meaning to blow or puff. Words such as blower, blowpipe, and blowtorch belong to the same modern English word family formed on blow.
How blowziness is actually used
Blowiness is uncommon and sounds literary or old-fashioned. Its figurative use is generally disparaging, while the literal sense describing windiness is comparatively rare.