What does chattiness mean?
Chattiness is the quality of being chatty: a marked inclination to talk freely, readily, and often at length. In friendly contexts it can suggest warmth, ease, and sociability, as in a host whose chattiness puts guests at ease. The term can also carry a mildly critical edge when it means excessive or irrelevant talk, and complaints about tiresome chattiness are common in informal English. Chattiness is normally an uncountable noun, though plural forms are occasionally possible when distinct instances or degrees are being discussed. The word is common in British and American English and is especially associated with commentary about people, conversation, media, and public speaking. Compared with talkativeness, chattiness often emphasizes not merely frequency of speech but the sociable manner associated with it; compared with loquacity, it can sound less formal and less approving.
nounThe quality or habit of talking readily and at length, often in a friendly or animated way.
- Talkativeness, especially an inclination to talk freely and at length.
- Friendly sociability expressed through abundant or animated conversation.
"Her relaxed chattiness made it easy for new colleagues to join the conversation."
"His natural chattiness won over the younger members of the club."
"After several hours of relentless chattiness, she wished the meeting would move on."
Rare in modern usage. Chattiness is normally treated as an uncountable noun, and speakers generally prefer it without a plural.
"The panel noted the contrasting chattinesses of the two hosts."
Chattiness can be social glue or social noise—the same quality judged as warmth from one angle and excess from another.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of chattiness
Chattiness is an English noun formed from chatty by adding the suffix -ness, while chatty in turn derives from chat. The word chat has an Old English ancestor in chattian, associated with chattering or talking freely. Later related forms such as chatter and the reduplicative chit-chat developed from the same broad English verbal tradition.
How chattiness is actually used
Informal and sometimes gently disparaging, especially when it describes someone who talks too much or prevents others from speaking. It can also be approving when it describes warm, sociable conversation.
Easily confused with chattiness
Chattiness is the noun naming the quality of being chatty, whereas chatty is the adjective describing a person, place, or style of communication.