sportfulness

Etymology

From sportful + -ness.

Why this word is great

SPORTFULNESS — [Noun] The quality or state of being playful or inclined to amuse oneself, often with a physical or competitive edge. From sportful ("playful, inclined to sport") + -ness (noun-forming suffix indicating a state or quality). Unlike "playfulness" (which drifts on whimsy) or "mischief" (which pricks with provocation), sportfulness is the buoyant energy of bodies in motion—a wrestler's exaggerated stumble after a feigned defeat, the impromptu race down an empty street, or the way children turn a flight of stairs into an obstacle course. It is play with muscle and breath, a fleeting rebellion against the gravity of seriousness, reminding us that joy thrives in motion.

noun

  1. playfulness“In long winter nights it was hard to tell who enjoyed sportfulness the better, the children who romped the floor, or the parents who, with lighted countenance, looked at them.”