newness
noun/ˈn(j)uːnəs/
Etymology From Middle English newnesse, from Old English nīewnes (“newness, novelty”), equivalent to new + -ness.
1
The property of being new; novelty; recency.
- The newness of the car meant it still had that funny smell.
- Surprised and rejoiced thus far at the unanticipated newness, and the sweet lucidness and simplicity of Isabel’s narrating, […] Pierre now, in handing the instrument to Isabel, could not entirely restrain something like a look of half-regret, accompanied rather strangely with a half-smile of gentle humor.1852, Herman Melville, Pierre; or The Ambiguities:
2 more examples
- The newness is gone / The newness is gone / So why should we make pretend / When our love affair is destined to end1976, Eddie Kendricks, “The Newness Is Gone”, in Goin' Up in Smoke:
- Thankfully, that sense of newness does come in the form of Ke Huy Quan’s Gary De’Snake, the first reptilian addition to Zootopia‘s all-mammal cast.2025 November 25, Caroline Siede, “Zootopia 2 is a stagnant sequel with one stellar subplot”, in AV Club:
- Related terms
- brand-newness