flirtatiousness
- noun
- /flɜrˈteɪʃəsnəs/
- There was something else that she noticed: a girlishness, almost a flirtatiousness.
Examples
-
There had always existed a mild flirtatiousness between Adriane and Garrett, and it pleased her to think that his wife noticed and minded.
Fiction book (2000) -
Then the next morning, again, there's now actually a little flirtatiousness going on.
-
She was capable of a desperate flirtatiousness within the group.
Fiction book (1990) -
His eyes were lively—with flirtatiousness, with ambition, with the desire to please.
Fiction book (1998) -
He fluttered his eyelashes at her in exaggerated flirtatiousness.
Fiction book (1995) -
She greeted him with a wink and a smile, full of playful flirtatiousness.
-
At the party, her flirtatiousness made it clear she was interested in getting to know him better.
-
His charming flirtatiousness always brightened the mood in the room.
Synonyms
Playful or romantic behavior that shows interest in someone
Playful behaviour to show romantic or sexual interest
Playful behavior to attract someone in a romantic way
Acting to show sexual interest without wanting to continue
Playful behavior, like smiling and teasing, that tries to attract romantic interest
Playful teasing that tries to attract sexual attention
A quality that makes people feel sexual interest
Antonyms
How Flirtatious
Surface Forms
Morphology
flirtatiousness = flirtatious (transparent) = flirt + atious + ness
The noun is formed regularly from the adjective 'flirtatious' with the abstract noun suffix '-ness'.
Etymology
Flirtatiousness comes from the short verb flirt, which long ago meant a quick 'flick' or sudden movement and then came to mean playful teasing that shows romantic interest; the ending -ness turns that idea into a noun. A helpful way to remember it is to think of quick, playful gestures like a light 'flick' or 'flutter' that say you are interested in someone.