Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

nothing doing

Idioms  
  1. Certainly not, as in Can I borrow your down coat?—Nothing doing. This colloquial interjection was first recorded in 1910. Also see, no dice.


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But so much of it still involves nothing: doing nothing, feeling nothing, going nowhere.

From Slate • Oct. 28, 2024

Replays show the ball hit her arm only after bouncing up from her knee, so nothing doing and play continues.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2024

And we know that this college basketball season opens with so many coaches handling these issues as they always have: saying nothing, doing nothing.

From Washington Post • Nov. 9, 2017

Without a trace of complaint or hardship, he describes happily living in cramped apartments, earning nothing doing comedy and sledgehammering walls for $25 a day.

From New York Times • Sep. 18, 2017

I keep my head down, but nothing doing.

From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Look it up. Learn it forever.

Remember "nothing doing" for good with VocabTrainer. Expand your vocabulary effortlessly with personalized learning tools that adapt to your goals.

Take me to Vocabulary.com