Nearby words
Origin of nought
before 900; Middle English; Old English nōht, contraction of nōwiht, equivalent to ne not + ōwiht aught1
Can be confused
naught noughtDefinition for nought (2 of 2)
naught
or nought
[ nawt ]
/ nɔt /
noun
a cipher (0); zero.
adjective
lost; ruined.
Archaic. worthless; useless.
Obsolete. morally bad; wicked.
adverb
Obsolete. not.
Origin of naught
Can be confused
naught noughtDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for nought
British Dictionary definitions for nought (1 of 2)
nought
/ (nɔːt) /
noun Also: naught, ought, aught
the digit 0; zero: used esp in counting or numbering
noun, adjective, adverb
a variant spelling of naught
Word Origin for nought
Old English nōwiht, from ne not, no + ōwiht something; see whit
British Dictionary definitions for nought (2 of 2)
naught
/ (nɔːt) /
noun
archaic, or literary nothing or nothingness; ruin or failure
a variant spelling (esp US) of nought
set at naught to have disregard or scorn for; disdain
adverb
archaic, or literary not at allit matters naught
adjective
obsolete worthless, ruined, or wicked
Word Origin for naught
Old English nāwiht, from nā no 1 + wiht thing, person; see wight 1, whit
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Idioms and Phrases with nought
naught
see come to nothing (naught).
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.