Ghastliness
/ˈɡæs(t)li.nəs/noun
The quality of being horrible, terrifying, or shockingly unpleasant.
Did you know?Ghastly and ghost are historically related: both go back to an Old English root meaning 'to frighten' or 'to terrify,' which is why the word still feels haunted.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ǵʰey-
“to be excited, to be agitated”
Old English
OE
gǣstan
“to terrify, frighten, or afflict”
Old English
OE
gǣst
“spirit, ghost”
Middle English
ME
ghastly
“terrifying, dreadful, ghostlike”
14th–15th Century
English
ghastliness
“the state or quality of being ghastly”
Modern English
English
ghastliness
“the quality of being horrible or terrifying”