nothing

1 of 4

pronoun

noth·​ing ˈnə-thiŋ 

1

: not any thing : no thing

leaves nothing to the imagination

2

: no part

3

: one of no interest, value, or consequence

they mean nothing to me

see also next to nothing

nothing

2 of 4

adverb

: not at all : in no degree

nothing

3 of 4

noun

plural nothings

1

a

: something that does not exist

b

: the absence of all magnitude or quantity

also : zero sense 1a

c

: nothingness, nonexistence

2

: someone or something of no or slight value or size

3

: a light, playful, or frivolous remark

—usually plural

… from the time of their sitting down to table, it was a quick succession of busy nothings till the carriage came to the door …

—Jane Austen

He … had the most insinuating way of saying impertinent nothings to his doting female admirers.

—Charles Dickens

see also sweet nothings

nothing

4 of 4

adjective

: of no account : worthless

Phrases

nothing doing

: by no means : definitely no

nothing for it

: no alternative

nothing for it but to start over

nothing like

: not nearly

it's nothing like thorough enough

for nothing

1

: without reason

2

: at no charge

Synonyms

Adverb

• never
• no
• none
• noway
• noways
• nowise

Noun

• cipher
• dwarf
• half-pint
• insect
• insignificancy
• lightweight
• morsel
• nobody
• nonentity
• nullity
• number
• pip-squeak
• pygmy
• pigmy
• shrimp
• snippersnapper
• twerp
• whippersnapper
• zero
• zilch

Examples of nothing in a Sentence

Pronoun

There's nothing in my hands.

She knows nothing of our plans.

You have nothing to worry about.

There's nothing fun to do around here.

You think that's bad? It's nothing compared to what I went through.

Don't get all upset over nothing.

Your opinion means nothing to me.

“Are you hurt?” “Don't worry. It's nothing.”

Adverb

She is nothing like her sister.

It's nothing close to finished.

Noun

It appeared out of nothing.

The UFO hovered for a while, then vanished into nothing.

My children are important to me—I'm nothing without them.

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Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

And just so, these clouds like lines of coke, these fine bird-bone clouds giving structure to the afternoon sky will decompose into faint nothings. —Matthew Gavin Frank, Harper's Magazine, 9 June 2023

But even before that, women like Tina Turner and Josephine Baker were wearing costumes that evoked intimate little nothings. —Kristen Bateman, ELLE, 14 Apr. 2023

From Loewe’s dynamic striped wonders to Versace’s Courtney Love-esque little nothings, loose-fitting, pint-sizes dresses with major volume quickly became the garment on everyone’s minds. —Kristen Bateman, ELLE, 22 Mar. 2023

But central banks can do nothing directly to increase productivity. —Ramesh Ponnuru, National Review, 2 Apr. 2020

Tearing down the names of Hood and Lee, that don’t change nothing. —1843, 2 Apr. 2020

Four hours of early morning German grammar drills did nothing to help that situation. —Sarah Wu, Glamour, 1 Apr. 2020

Dwelling on inadequacies does nothing to help people feel more prepared or in control of a desperate situation. —Ryan Nickerson, Houston Chronicle, 1 Apr. 2020

But those deaths could have been as high as 2.2 million, if the U.S. did nothing, Mr. Trump said. —Kathryn Watson, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2020

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Word History

Etymology

Pronoun

Middle English, from Old English nān thing, nāthing, from nān no + thing thing — more at none

First Known Use

Pronoun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Adjective

1611, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing nothing

• all-or-nothing
• almost nothing
• apropos of nothing
• come to nothing
• can make nothing of
• betray nothing
• double or nothing
• do nothing for
• do-nothing
• have little/nothing to recommend it
• have nothing in common
• have (got) nothing left to prove
• have little/nothing to recommend him/her
• good-for-nothing
• had nothing to recommend him
• leave nothing to be desired
• It's nothing to do with
• lack/want for nothing
• if nothing else
• have nothing on (someone)
• in nothing flat
• here goes nothing
• know-nothing
• have nothing against
• next to nothing
• nothing but skin and bones
• leave nothing to the imagination
• mean nothing to (someone)
• leave nothing to chance
• nothing but trouble
• nothing could be farther from the truth
• nothing else
• nothing daunted
• nothing could be further from the truth
• nothing less than
• nothing could be further from someone's mind
• nothing if not
• nothing (further) to do with
• nothing in
• nothing in it (for someone)
• nothing else for it
• nothing of the kind
• nothing of the sort
• nothing so much as
• nothing personal
• nothing short of
• nothing succeeds like success
• nothing to
• nothing to it
• nothing to sniff at
• nothing to worry about
• nothing to write home about
• nothing ventured, nothing gained
• on a hiding to nothing
• stick at nothing
• think nothing of it
• stop at nothing
• to say nothing of
• think nothing of
• nothing comes of
• nothing doing
• nothing like
• nothing to sneeze at
• for nothing
• nothing for it

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• all-or-nothing
• almost nothing
• apropos of nothing
• come to nothing
• can make nothing of
• betray nothing
• double or nothing
• do nothing for
• do-nothing
• have little/nothing to recommend it
• have nothing in common
• have (got) nothing left to prove
• have little/nothing to recommend him/her
• good-for-nothing
• had nothing to recommend him
• leave nothing to be desired
• It's nothing to do with
• lack/want for nothing
• if nothing else
• have nothing on (someone)
• in nothing flat
• here goes nothing
• know-nothing
• have nothing against
• next to nothing
• nothing but skin and bones
• leave nothing to the imagination
• mean nothing to (someone)
• leave nothing to chance
• nothing but trouble
• nothing could be farther from the truth
• nothing else
• nothing daunted
• nothing could be further from the truth
• nothing less than
• nothing could be further from someone's mind
• nothing if not
• nothing (further) to do with
• nothing in
• nothing in it (for someone)
• nothing else for it
• nothing of the kind
• nothing of the sort
• nothing so much as
• nothing personal
• nothing short of
• nothing succeeds like success
• nothing to
• nothing to it
• nothing to sniff at
• nothing to worry about
• nothing to write home about
• nothing ventured, nothing gained
• on a hiding to nothing
• stick at nothing
• think nothing of it
• stop at nothing
• to say nothing of
• think nothing of
• nothing comes of
• nothing doing
• nothing like
• nothing to sneeze at
• for nothing
• nothing for it

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Video

Is 'None' Singular or Plural?

Or both? Or neither?

Kids Definition

nothing

1 of 3 pronoun

noth·​ing ˈnəth-iŋ 

1

: not anything

there's nothing in the box

2

: one of no interest, value, or importance

your opinion means nothing to me

nothing

2 of 3 adverb

: not at all : in no way

nothing

3 of 3 noun

1

a

: something that does not exist

b

: absence of quantity : zero

2

: something of little or no worth or importance

nothingness noun