not
[ not ]
/ nɒt /
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adverb
(used to express negation, denial, refusal, or prohibition): You must not do that. It's not far from here.
U.S. Slang. (used jocularly as a postpositive interjection to indicate that a previous statement is untrue): I just love working overtime without pay. Not!
QUIZ
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Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Idioms about not
not so much, Informal. (an expression of dismissive scorn, ambivalence, or skepticism): Attractive? Yes. Smart? Not so much.Is the world coming to an end? Yeah, not so much.
Origin of not
1275–1325; Middle English; weak variant of nought
WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH not
knot, notOther definitions for not (2 of 3)
NOT
[ not ]
/ nɒt /
noun
a Boolean operator that returns a positive result if its operand is negative and a negative result if its operand is positive.
Other definitions for not (3 of 3)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use not in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for not (1 of 2)
not
/ (nɒt) /
adverb
- used to negate the sentence, phrase, or word that it modifiesI will not stand for it
- (in combination)they cannot go
not that (conjunction) which is not to say or suppose thatI expect to lose the game — not that I mind Also (archaic): not but what
sentence substitute
used to indicate denial, negation, or refusalcertainly not
Word Origin for not
C14 not, variant of nought nothing, from Old English nāwiht, from nā no + wiht creature, thing. See naught, nought
British Dictionary definitions for not (2 of 2)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Other Idioms and Phrases with not
not
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.