ought

auxiliary verb \ ˈȯt \

Updated on: 22 Apr 2018

Definition of ought

—used to express obligation

ought to pay our debts

, advisability

ought to take care of yourself

, natural expectation

ought to be here by now

, or logical consequence

the result ought to be infinity

Origin and Etymology of ought

Middle English oughte (1st & 3rd singular present indicative), from oughte, 1st & 3rd singular past indicative & subjunctive of owen to own, owe — more at owe

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 12th century

See Words from the same year

ought

verb \ ˈȯ(ḵ)t \

Definition of ought

transitive verb

1 chiefly Scotland : possess

2 chiefly Scotland : owe

See ought defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of ought from the Web

Why is there a time of physical separation between husband and wife every month — a law found in one of this week's Torah portions? (Leviticus 15) To be sure, a mandate ought to be observed no matter — but is there a rationale?

— rabbi avi weiss, Jewish Journal, "Explaining the laws of family purity," 16 Apr. 2018
Freeman-Wilson said people also ought to comprehend that most Gary residents are not violent people.

— gregory tejeda, Post-Tribune, "Gary leaders promote anti-violence campaign," 13 Apr. 2018
Searches for Earth-like planets ramp up around our nearest stellar neighbor Alpha Centauri, a three-star system and the sun’s nearest neighbor at just 4 light-years away, ought to be a great place to look for Earth-like planets.

— katie langin, Science | AAAS, "Top stories: the oldest human fossil in Arabia, snakes on Mercury, and clot-busting mosquito spit," 13 Apr. 2018
Secretary Mattis ought not bother and instead use the money to help our troops, rather than advance the president’s political fantasies,’’ Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a statement to The Washington Post.

— washington post, BostonGlobe.com, "Trump privately presses for military to pay for border wall," 27 Mar. 2018
According to the standard model, hydrogen and antihydrogen ought to have the exact same states and absorb photons of the exact same energies.

— adrian cho, Science | AAAS, "Atoms and antiatoms haven’t crashed Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity—yet," 4 Apr. 2018
LaHood’s public face as creator of a new diversion program ought to serve him well in the Democratic primary.

— brian chasnoff, San Antonio Express-News, "LaHood cut out city officials on diversion program," 26 Feb. 2018
Megan McArdle Bannon Per Annum The Stephen Bannon Index, measuring the media mentions of the Trump adviser as a proxy for bad news for Trump, ought to be obsolete.

— Fortune, "Is President Trump Good or Bad for the Economy? These 14 Numbers Give an Answer," 22 Jan. 2018
But with November’s midterm elections still months away, Democrats also ought to be concerned about some warning signs on the horizon, Seib says.

— gerard baker, WSJ, "The 10-Point.," 13 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ought.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of ought

Middle English oughte, 1st & 3rd singular past indicative of owen

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

ought

noun \ ˈȯt \

Definition of ought

: moral obligation : duty

Recent Examples of ought from the Web

Both Moore and Garnier are two household names synonymous with beauty for any young person who grew up in the oughts, so their current collaboration is one that makes perfect sense given the current attention on that decade.

— carolyn hanson, Billboard, "'This is Us' Star Mandy Moore is Garnier's Newest Ambassador," 14 Sep. 2017