The quality or state of being a horse or horse-like in nature; the essential characteristics that define horses as a species.
From Latin 'equus' (horse) + '-inity' suffix (state of being). The suffix '-inity' comes from Latin '-itas', used to form nouns denoting abstract qualities. This word evolved to describe the inherent nature and properties unique to equine animals.
This word is almost never used in modern English, but it represents a fascinating linguistic principle: English creates words for abstract concepts by combining a root noun with '-inity' (like 'divinity' from 'divine'), yet we rarely need a word for 'horse-ness' since we just say 'horse' or 'equine.' It shows how languages only develop words for ideas people actually need to discuss!
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