catchinessn.
/ˈkatʃɪnᵻs/, U.S. /ˈkɛtʃinᵻs/, /ˈkætʃinᵻs/ The quality or condition of being catchy (in various senses of the adjective); esp. (with reference to a tune, slogan, etc.) the quality of being instantly appealing or memorable.
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society > leisure > the arts > music > musical sound > melody or succession of sounds > [noun] > catchiness
catchiness1832
catchingness1884
1832 Morning Chron. 20 Nov. We certainly never before heard him deliver blank verse..with so much fulness and flow, and with a vast deal less of that terseness of tone and catchiness of manner.
1858 Lit. Gaz. 21 Aug. 233/3 The titles of the different articles are very generally signalised, rather by their quaintness and their ‘catchiness’, than by any strict exactitude of reference to the matter contained in them.
1898 Cent. Mag. Mar. 773/1 In spite of its dangerously instantaneous catchiness, it [sc. the étude] expresses just the sentiment of flattery in all its shades.
1912 Printers' Ink 18 June 59/2 ‘Earn While You Learn’ merely indicates that you can hold a job while following the course of study, but the general catchiness of the line makes it stand out.
1983 Truckin' Life Aug. 65/2 A bit of feeling around with the gear lever though showed a decided catchiness in the selector between the two foremost gear positions.
2007 J. Apter G. Stefani & No Doubt vii. 127 It was hard not to be seduced by the song's catchiness, and it dominated..college radio.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2018; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1832