nothing Hear it!

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nothing definition

noth·ing (nut̸h′iŋ)

pronoun

    1. no thing; not anything; naught
    2. no part, element, trace, etc. nothing of kindness in him
    1. something of little or no value, seriousness, etc.; trifle
    2. a person considered to be of no value or importance

Etymology: ME < OE na thing, nan thing

noun

  1. nonexistence; nothingness
  2. a thing that does not exist
    1. something of little or no value, seriousness, etc.; trifle
    2. a person considered to be of no value or importance
  4. a naught; zero; cipher

adverb

not at all; in no manner or degree nothing daunted
nothing Idioms

for nothing

  1. free; at no cost
  2. in vain; uselessly
  3. without reason

in nothing flat

☆
Informal in almost no time at all

make nothing of

  1. to treat as of little importance
  2. to fail to understand

nothing but

only; nothing other than

nothing doing

Informal
  1. no: used as a refusal of a request
  2. no result, accomplishment, etc.: an exclamation of disappointment

nothing if not

decidedly and unmistakably he's nothing if not prompt

nothing less than

no less than; just the same as
also nothing short of

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms nothing idiom

nothing Synonyms

nothing

n.

not anything, no thing, trifle, triviality, bagatelle, nothingness, nonexistence, inexistence, nonbeing, nullity, zero, nihility, extinction, oblivion, obliteration, annihilation, nonentity, neither hide nor hair, goose egg*, zip*, zilch*; see also blank 1, emptiness.

for nothing

  1. gratis, without cost, unencumbered; see free 4.

  2. in vain, for naught, emptily;

in nothing flat*

in almost no time at all, speedily, rapidly; see quickly 1.

make nothing of

minimize, underplay, play down; see neglect 1.

think nothing of

minimize, underplay, disregard; see neglect 1.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

nothing Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • do: Or, of course, you could do nothing.

Adjective modifier

  • there's: No, the good thing is that thereâs nothing else like it on British television.

Modifies a noun

  • happening: Apart from the bloody war, there's nothing happening!

Noun used with modifier

  • means: This means nothing when men refuse to use condoms because they don't like them.

Preposition: in

  • paragraph: Nothing in this paragraph shall affect your statutory rights.

Preposition: of

  • sort: CIGARETTE SMOKING MAN: ( chuckling ) I did nothing of the sort.

Preposition: from

  • selfishness: What kind of Church would we have if we did nothing from selfishness or empty conceit?
nothing usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

nothing quotes

   But we mustn't go too far back†in anybody's life† Because if we do†then nobody is to blame for anything, and nothing matters, and everything is allowed.

-Amis, Martin Louis

Wouldn't Take Nothing for my Journey Now.

-Angelou, Maya originally MayaJohnson

Nothing in excess.

-Anonymous

nothing quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"nothing." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/nothing>

APA Style

nothing. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/nothing

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