Etymograph

English

realness

Realness comes from English real, and goes back to Old French ree.

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400ree1
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500real1
  3. English1500–presentreal1
  4. Englishtodayrealness1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English realness

Lineage

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400reeWiktionary, English realness
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500realWiktionary, English realness
  3. English1500–presentrealWiktionary, English realness
  4. EnglishtodayrealnessWiktionary, English realness

A compound of real + -ness

Proto-Indo-European *reh₁ís ‘wealth, goods’

…

Latin rēs ‘thing, matter’

Late Latin reālis ‘actual’

Old French reel

Middle English real ‘real, true’

English real

Linked words

through Middle English real

really, 8 more

through English real

realism, unreal, realist, 7 more

Today it means

noun The state of being real; reality.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “realness”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Old French ree / realness

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