nothing doing

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

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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