The quality or state of devouring; the characteristic of consuming or destroying greedily and rapidly.
From 'devouring' (adjective, meaning consuming greedily) plus '-ness' suffix (forming abstract nouns). Creates an abstract noun describing the quality of being consuming or destructive.
Adding '-ness' to participles like 'devouring' creates these wonderfully abstract concepts—the 'devouringness' of grief, of ambition, of time itself—showing how English turns active verbs into philosophical ideas.
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