not
EnglishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Middle English not, nat, variant of noght, naht (“not, nothing”), from Old English *nōht, nāht (“nought, nothing”), short for nōwiht, nāwiht (“nothing”, literally “not anything”), corresponding to ne (“not”) + ōwiht, āwiht (“anything”), corresponding to ā (“ever, always”) + wiht (“thing, creature”).
Cognate with Scots nat, naucht (“not”), Saterland Frisian nit (“not”), West Frisian net (“not”), Dutch niet (“not”), German nicht (“not”). Compare nought, naught and aught. More at no, wight, whit.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation)
- (General American)
- Rhymes: -ɒt
- Homophone: knot
- Homophone: naught, nought (cot–caught merger)
AdverbEdit
not (not comparable)
- Negates the meaning of the modified verb.
- ‘Do they know?’ ‘I believe not’ (formal)
- 1973 November 17, Richard Milhous Nixon, Orlando press conference:
- 1991, Stephen Fry, The Liar, p. 59:
- The sound of Abba singing 'Dancing Queen' had started up in a room the other side of the court. Adrian slammed the window shut.
‘That'll teach you to throw things out of the window,’ said Gary.
‘It'll teach me not to throw things out of the window.’
- The sound of Abba singing 'Dancing Queen' had started up in a room the other side of the court. Adrian slammed the window shut.
- 1998 January 26, William Jefferson Clinton, White House press conference:
- I want to say one thing to the American people. I want you to listen to me. I'm going to say this again: I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.
- 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)
- Did you take out the trash? No, I did not.
- Not knowing any better, I went ahead.
- To no degree.
- That is not red; it's green.
- (understatement, litotes) Used to indicate the opposite or near opposite, often in a form of understatement.
- That day was not the best day of my life.
- It was not my favorite movie of all time.
- In the not too distant future my view on the matter might be not a million miles away from yours.
Usage notesEdit
In modern usage, do-support requires that the form do not ... (or don’t ...) be preferred to ... not for all but a short list of verbs (be, have, can, shall, will, would, may, must, need, ought):
- They do not sow. (modern) vs. They sow not. (KJB)
American usage tends to prefer don’t have or haven’t got to have not or haven’t, except when have is used as an auxiliary (or in the idiom have-not):
- I don’t have a clue or I haven’t got a clue. (US)
- I haven’t a clue or I haven’t got a clue. (outside US)
- I haven’t been to Spain. (universal)
The verb need is only directly negated when used as an auxiliary, and even this usage is rare, especially in the US.
- You don’t need to trouble yourself. (common)
- You needn’t trouble yourself. (outside US, rare)
- I don’t need any eggs today. (universal)
The verb dare can sometimes be directly negated.
- I daren't do that.
The verb do, as a main verb, takes do not.
- He does not do that.
In the imperative, all verbs, including be, take do not.
- Don't do that.
- Don't be silly. (not *Be not silly.)
In the infinitive, verbs must be negated directly. In this case not cannot appear after the verb; some authorities recommend placing it before to to avoid a split infinitive, but for most speakers the forms not to do and to not do are more or less interchangeable, with the latter being mostly informal.
- The objective is not to lose or The objective is to not lose.
- I wanted not to go or I wanted to not go. (Note the difference between this and I didn't want to go, where want is the verb being negated.)
In the subjunctive mood, do-support is not used. Instead, not is placed by itself immediately before the verb it modifies, even be:
- They suggested that he not do it.
- The law requires that it not be done.
Derived termsEdit
Related termsEdit
TranslationsEdit
|
|
ConjunctionEdit
not
- And not.
- I wanted a plate of shrimp, not a bucket of chicken.
- He painted the car blue and black, not solid purple.
Usage notesEdit
- The construction “A, not B” is synonymous with the constructions “A, and not B”; “not B, but A”; and “not B, but rather A”.
TranslationsEdit
|
|
InterjectionEdit
not!
- (slang, 1990s) Used to indicate that the previous phrase was meant sarcastically or ironically.
- I really like hanging out with my little brother watching Barney... not!
- Sure, you're perfect the way you are... not!
SynonymsEdit
TranslationsEdit
See alsoEdit
NounEdit
not (plural nots)
- Alternative letter-case form of NOT
Usage notesEdit
Boolean operators and states are commonly written in all uppercase in order to distinguish them from the ordinary uses of the words.
TranslationsEdit
ContractionEdit
not
- (obsolete) Contraction of ne wot; not to know.
- 1387–1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales, [Westminster: William Caxton, published 1478], OCLC 230972125; republished in [William Thynne], editor, The Workes of Geffray Chaucer Newlye Printed, […], [London]: […] [Richard Grafton for] Iohn Reynes […], 1542, OCLC 932884868:
- I noot which was the fairer of hem two
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
- not at OneLook Dictionary Search
AnagramsEdit
AlbanianEdit
EtymologyEdit
From notoj.
NounEdit
not m
Related termsEdit
AromanianEdit
Etymology 1Edit
Alternative formsEdit
NounEdit
not m
- dry wind from the south
SynonymsEdit
See alsoEdit
Etymology 2Edit
VerbEdit
not
Etymology 3Edit
From anot (“I swim”). Compare Italian nuoto, Portuguese nado.
NounEdit
not m
SynonymsEdit
DanishEdit
Etymology 1Edit
NounEdit
not c (singular definite noten, plural indefinite noter)
InflectionEdit
Etymology 2Edit
NounEdit
not c or n (singular definite noten or notet, plural indefinite noter or not)
InflectionEdit
Derived termsEdit
Etymology 3Edit
See the etymology of the main entry.
VerbEdit
not
- imperative of note
IcelandicEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
not n pl (plurale tantum)
DeclensionEdit
SynonymsEdit
Derived termsEdit
- koma að notum (to be of use, to be useful)
Related termsEdit
- nota (“to use”)
IndonesianEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Dutch noot, from Middle Dutch note, from Old French note, from Latin nota. Doublet of nota.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
not
- (music) note, a character, variously formed, to indicate the length of a tone, and variously placed upon the staff to indicate its pitch.
- Synonym: titi nada
CompoundsEdit
Further readingEdit
- “not” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia (KBBI) Daring, Jakarta: Badan Pengembangan dan Pembinaan Bahasa, Kementerian Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Republik Indonesia, 2016.
LuxembourgishEdit
AdjectiveEdit
not
Middle EnglishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
EtymologyEdit
Reduction of nought (from Old English nāwiht, nōwiht).
PronunciationEdit
AdverbEdit
not
- not (negates the accompanying verb)
- Þei ne bileveden hire not. ― They didn't believe her.
- not (to no degree, extent, or way)
- Þou art not weyke. ― You aren't weak.
DescendantsEdit
ReferencesEdit
- “not, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
NounEdit
not (uncountable)
DescendantsEdit
ReferencesEdit
- “not, pron.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Norwegian NynorskEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
NounEdit
not f (definite singular nota, indefinite plural nøter, definite plural nøtene)
- Alternative spelling of nót
Etymology 2Edit
From Middle Low German.[1]
NounEdit
not f (definite singular nota, indefinite plural noter, definite plural notene)
- Alternative spelling of nót
Etymology 3Edit
See the etymology of the main entry.
NounEdit
not
ReferencesEdit
AnagramsEdit
Old EnglishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
- nōt
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
not m (nominative plural notas)
DeclensionEdit
DescendantsEdit
Old SwedishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Old Norse nót, from Proto-Germanic *nōtō.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
nōt f
DeclensionEdit
singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
nominative | nōt | nōtin | nōta(r) | nōtana(r) |
accusative | nōt | nōtina, -ena | nōta(r) | nōtana(r) |
dative | nōt | nōtinni, -inne | nōtum, -om | nōtumin, -omen |
genitive | nōta(r) | nōtinnar | nōta | nōtanna |
DescendantsEdit
- Swedish: not
RomanschEdit
Alternative formsEdit
- (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan, Sutsilvan, Surmiran) notg
EtymologyEdit
From Latin noctem, accusative of nox, from Proto-Indo-European *nókʷts.
NounEdit
not f (plural nots)
Scottish GaelicEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
not m (genitive singular not, plural notaichean)
- Alternative form of nota
SwedishEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Old French note (noun), noter (verb), both from Latin nota.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
not c
- (music) note.
- a short message; note.
- (diplomacy) a formal message from a country to another country’s embassy.
DeclensionEdit
Declension of not | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||
Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
Nominative | not | noten | noter | noterna |
Genitive | nots | notens | noters | noternas |
Etymology 2Edit
NounEdit
not c
DeclensionEdit
Declension of not | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||
Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
Nominative | not | noten | notar | notarna |
Genitive | nots | notens | notars | notarnas |
AnagramsEdit
Tok PisinEdit
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
not
TurkishEdit
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
not (definite accusative notu, plural notlar)
- a short message; note
- Not: Seni seviyorum. ― PS: I love you.
DeclensionEdit
Inflection | ||
---|---|---|
Nominative | not | |
Definite accusative | notu | |
Singular | Plural | |
Nominative | not | notlar |
Definite accusative | notu | notları |
Dative | nota | notlara |
Locative | notta | notlarda |
Ablative | nottan | notlardan |
Genitive | notun | notların |