Meaning & use
calmness
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Meanings
noununcountable
A peaceful state of mind in which you are not worried, angry or excited.
Grammar: Uncountable: she handled the crisis with calmness; no plural.
Patterns
- with calmness
- calmness under pressure
- a sense of calmness
The pilot spoke with calmness while the plane shook.
Deep breathing helped her find calmness before the exam.
Her calmness reassured the frightened children.
noununcountableliterary
A lack of wind, waves or movement in the weather or in water.
Grammar: Uncountable and often poetic: the calmness of the lake.
Patterns
- the calmness of the sea
- calmness of the air
The calmness of the lake made it a perfect mirror for the mountains.
A strange calmness settled over the sea before the storm.
We enjoyed the calmness of the early morning.
Common combinations
- remarkable calmness
- He showed remarkable calmness in the emergency.
- sense of calmness
- A sense of calmness came over her.
- calmness under pressure
- Nurses need calmness under pressure.
- outward calmness
- His outward calmness hid a great deal of worry.
- maintain calmness
- The teacher managed to maintain calmness in a noisy class.
- inner calmness
- Meditation gave him inner calmness.
Synonyms and how they differ
- serenity
- Serenity suggests a deep, lasting peace and is more poetic than calmness.
- composure
- Composure specifically means keeping control of your feelings in a difficult moment, while calmness can also be a lasting trait.
- tranquility
- Tranquility fits peaceful places and settings as well as people, whereas calmness is more about a person's mood.
- stillness
- Stillness refers to a lack of movement or noise, whereas calmness is mainly about feeling or temperament.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: calmness or calm? calmness or stillness?
calmness vs calm
Calm is the adjective or verb, while calmness is the noun naming the quality; say 'she stayed calm' but 'she showed calmness'.
calmness vs stillness
Stillness is about absence of motion, while calmness is about absence of agitation, so a nervous person can be perfectly still without any calmness.
Practice
The doctor spoke with such _____ that the anxious family relaxed.
Choose one answer.
After 'such' and a preposition 'with' you need a noun, so calmness is correct. 'Calmly' is an adverb, and 'calm down' and 'calmed' are verb forms.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “calmness”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.