Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition


Not

Not

.
[Contr. from
ne wot
. See 2d
Note
.]
Wot not; know not; knows not.
[Obs.]
Chaucer.

Not

,
Adj.
Shorn; shaven.
[Obs.]
See
Nott
.

Not

,
adv.
[OE.
not
,
noht
,
nought
,
naught
, the same word as E.
naught
. See
Naught
.]
A word used to express negation, prohibition, denial, or refusal.
Not
one word spake he more than was need.
Chaucer.
Thou shalt
not
steal.
Ex. xx. 15.
Thine eyes are upon me, and I am
not
.
Job vii. 8.
The question is, may I do it, or may I
not
do it?
Bp. Sanderson.
Not . . . but
, or
Not but
,
only.
[Obs. or Colloq.]
Chaucer.

Webster 1828 Edition


Not

NOT

,
adv.
[See Naught.]
1.
A word that expreses negation, denial or refusal; as, he will no go; will you remain? I will not. In the first member of a sentence, it may be followed by nor or neither; as not for a price nor reward; I was not in sfety, neither had I rest.
2.
With the substantive verb in the following phrase, it denies being, or denotes extinction of existence.
Thine eyes are open upon me, and I am not. Job 7.

Definition 2024


Not

Not

See also: not, NOT, nót, nôt, nốt, nőt, not., and Appendix:Variations of "not"

German

Alternative forms

  • Noth (obsolete)

Noun

Not f (genitive Not, plural Nöte)

  1. need, imminence
    Kinder in Not ― Children in Need (name of a charitable organisation)
  2. necessity, poverty
  3. emergency, crisis

Declension

Derived terms

Related terms

not

not

See also: Not, NOT, nót, nôt, nốt, nőt, not., and Appendix:Variations of "not"

English

Adverb

not (not comparable)

  1. Negates the meaning of the modified verb.
    • 1973, Richard Nixon.
      Well, I'm not a crook. I've earned everything I've got.
    Did you take out the trash? No, I did not.
    Not knowing any better, I went ahead.
  2. To no degree
    That is not red; it's orange.

Usage notes

In modern usage, the form do not ... (or don’t ...) is preferred to ... not for all but a short list of verbs (is/am/are/was/were, have/has/had, can/could, shall/should, will/would, may/might, need):

  • 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 in the US.

  • You don’t need to trouble yourself. (US)
  • You needn’t trouble yourself. (outside US)
  • I don’t need any eggs today. (universal)

The verb dare can sometimes be directly negated.

  • I daren't do that.

Related terms

Translations

Conjunction

not

  1. And not.
    I wanted a plate of shrimp, not a bucket of chicken.
    He painted the car blue and black, not solid purple.

Usage notes

  • The construction “A, not B” is synonymous with the constructions “A, and not B”; “not B, but A”; and “not B, but rather A”.

Translations

Interjection

not!

  1. (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!

Synonyms

Translations

See also

  • Appendix:American Dialect Society words of the year

Noun

not (plural nots)

  1. Unary logical function NOT, true if input is false, or a gate implementing that negation function.
    You need a not there to conform with the negative logic of the memory chip.

Related terms

Translations

See also

See also

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: as · had · you · #18: not · be · at · by

Anagrams


Albanian

Etymology

From notoj.

Noun

not m

  1. a swim

Related terms


Aromanian

Etymology 1

From Greek νότος (nótos).

Alternative forms

Noun

not m

  1. dry wind from the south

Synonyms

  • iug

See also

Verb

not

  1. Alternative form of anot to swim

Etymology 3

From anot (I swim). Compare Italian nuoto, Portuguese nado.

Noun

not m

  1. swim, swimming

Synonyms

  • notalui

Danish

Etymology 1

From German Nut.

Noun

not c (singular definite noten, plural indefinite noter)

  1. (mechanics) A groove.
Inflection

Etymology 2

From Norwegian not.

Noun

not class /n (singular definite noten or notet, plural indefinite noter or not)

  1. (fishing) A seine net.
Inflection
Synonyms
Derived terms

Etymology 3

See note.

Verb

not

  1. imperative of note

Icelandic

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -ɔːt

Noun

not n pl (plurale tantum)

  1. use

Declension

Derived terms

  • koma að notum (to be of use, to be useful)

Lojban

Rafsi

not

  1. rafsi of notci.

Luxembourgish

Adjective

not

  1. inflected form of no

Old English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Latin nota.

Noun

not m (nominative plural notas)

  1. a sign; mark; a mark made on an object

Declension

Descendants


Old Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse nót, from Proto-Germanic *nōtō.

Noun

nōt f

  1. net, seine

Declension

Descendants


Romansch

Alternative forms

  • (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan, Sutsilvan, Surmiran) notg

Etymology

From Latin nox, noctem, from Proto-Indo-European *nókʷts.

Noun

not f (plural nots)

  1. (Puter, Vallader) night

Scottish Gaelic

Noun

not m (genitive singular not, plural notaichean)

  1. Alternative form of nota.

Swedish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈnuːt/

Noun

not c

  1. (music) note.
  2. a short message; note.
  3. (diplomacy) a formal message from a country to another country’s embassy.

Declension

Inflection of not 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative not noten noter noterna
Genitive nots notens noters noternas

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English North.

Noun

not

  1. North

Turkish

Noun

not (definite accusative notu, plural notlar)

  1. a short message; note
    Not: Seni seviyorum.
    PS: I love you.

Declension