See Also: naught(dictionary)
naught(dictionary)

naught (iou)



naught pronoun, noun, adjective, adverb, & verb.
[Old English nawiht, nawuht, nauht, from NA adverb1 + wiht WIGHT noun. Cf. NOUGHT.]
A. pronoun & noun.
Nothing, not any thing. Now arch. & literary. OE.
be naught efface oneself, keep quiet, withdraw (usu. in imper.). bring to naught ruin; frustrate, foil. call all to naught vilify, abuse. come to naught be ruined or frustrated. for naught = for nothing s.v. NOTHING pronoun & noun. set at naught disregard, despise; nullify, frustrate.
M. Twain He shall show naught of unrest to the curious.
Wickedness, evil, moral wrong. OE-M17.
b. Something wrong or faulty in method. M16-M17.
a. A thing of no worth or value. rare. Only in M16.
b. In pl. Nothing, nought. rare. M-L16.
c. A zero, a nought. M17.
d. A bad person. M17.
b. adjective.
Worthless, useless; bad, poor. OE.
b. Of food or drink: unfit for consumption, unwholesome. Now rare or obsolete. L16.
c. Wrong in method; harmful, injurious. L16-M17.
Morally bad, wicked; immoral. M16-M18.
b. In illicit sexual contact with. M16-L17.
Lost, ruined. Only in E17.
C. adverb.
Not. OE-LME.
Badly; wrongly. M16-E17.
D. verb trans.
Refrain from, avoid. rare. Only in ME.
Ruin, frustrate, foil; annihilate. literary. E20.