suddenness

noun

Etymology: Etymology tree English sudden Proto-Germanic *-inōną Proto-Indo-European *-dyé- Proto-Germanic *-atjaną Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Germanic *-þuz Proto-Germanic *-assuz Proto-Germanic *-inassuz Proto-West Germanic *-nassī Old English -nes Middle English -nesse English -ness English suddenness From sudden + -ness.

1. The state of being sudden.

   “The suddenness with which the solemn quiet had been broken in upon, had chaced from his remembrance the horrid phantom;—it now recurred to it, with two-fold force, and a shudder crept all over him.”

   “The suddenness of this shock must prove irresistable; the Count and those about him will be borne down; the rest will take to flight; the friends of Bernabò will rise and liberate his sons, while I seize one of the gates and secure a retreat […]”