no

adj

1. Initialism of normally open.

adv

Etymology: Variant of No., from the scribal abbreviation for Latin (in) numerō (“in number, to the number of”).

1. Alternative form of No.

det

Etymology: Inherited from Middle English no, noo, na, a reduced form of none, noon, nan (“none, not any”) used before consonants (compare a to an), from Old English nān (“none, not any”), from Proto-West Germanic *nain, from Proto-Germanic *nainaz (“not any”, literally “not one”), equivalent to ne (“not”) + a. Piecewise doublet of none. Cognate with Scots nae (“no, not any, none”), Old Frisian nān, nēn ("no, not any, none"), Saterland Frisian naan, neen (“no, not any, none”), North Frisian nian (“no, not any, none”), Old Dutch nēn ("no, not any, none"; > Dutch neen (“no”)), Old Norse neinn (“no, not any, none”). Compare also Old Saxon nigēn ("not any"; > Low German nen), Old Dutch nehēn (Middle Dutch negheen/negeen, Dutch geen), West Frisian gjin, Old High German nihein (> German kein). More at no, one.

1. Not any.

   “no one”

   “There is no water left.”

2. Hardly any.

   “We'll be finished in no time at all.”

   “Fifty pounds for this is no money, really.”

3. Not any possibility or allowance of (something).

   “No smoking. No parking.”

   “There's no stopping her once she gets going.”

4. Not (a); not properly, not really; not fully.

   “My mother's no fool.”

   “Working nine to five every day is no life.”

name

1. A lake in South Sudan.
2. A county of South Sudan.

noun

Etymology: Variant of No., from the scribal abbreviation for Latin (in) numerō (“in number, to the number of”).

1. Alternative form of No.

particle

Etymology: Inherited from Middle English no, na, from Old English nā, nō (“no, not, not ever, never”), from Proto-West Germanic *naiwō, from Proto-Germanic *naiwô (“never”), from *ne (“not”) + *aiwō (“ever”), equivalent to Old English ne + ā, ō. Cognate with Scots na (“no”), Saterland Frisian noa (“no”), West Frisian né (“no”), nea (“never”), Dutch nee (“no”), Low German nee (“no”), German nie (“never”), dialectal German nö (“no”), Danish nej (“no”), Swedish nej (“no”), Icelandic nei (“no”). More at nay.

1. Used to show disagreement, negation, denial, refusal, or prohibition.

   “No, you are mistaken.”

   “No, you may not watch television now.”

2. Used to express sadness or disappointment.

   “We lost. / No!”

3. Used to express disbelief.

   “I got the job! / No! Really? That's fantastic!”

4. Used to show agreement with a negative question.

   “"Don’t you like milk?" "No." (i.e., "No, I don’t like milk.")”

5. Used together with an affirmative word or phrase to show agreement.

   “No, totally.”

   “No, yeah, that's exactly right.”

prep

Etymology: Inherited from Middle English no, na, from Old English nā, nō (“no, not, not ever, never”), from Proto-West Germanic *naiwō, from Proto-Germanic *naiwô (“never”), from *ne (“not”) + *aiwō (“ever”), equivalent to Old English ne + ā, ō. Cognate with Scots na (“no”), Saterland Frisian noa (“no”), West Frisian né (“no”), nea (“never”), Dutch nee (“no”), Low German nee (“no”), German nie (“never”), dialectal German nö (“no”), Danish nej (“no”), Swedish nej (“no”), Icelandic nei (“no”). More at nay.

1. Without.

   “Look Ma, no hands!”

2. Like.

verb

Etymology: Inherited from Middle English no, na, from Old English nā, nō (“no, not, not ever, never”), from Proto-West Germanic *naiwō, from Proto-Germanic *naiwô (“never”), from *ne (“not”) + *aiwō (“ever”), equivalent to Old English ne + ā, ō. Cognate with Scots na (“no”), Saterland Frisian noa (“no”), West Frisian né (“no”), nea (“never”), Dutch nee (“no”), Low German nee (“no”), German nie (“never”), dialectal German nö (“no”), Danish nej (“no”), Swedish nej (“no”), Icelandic nei (“no”). More at nay.

1. To say “no”.

   “She felt disquiet at these tales of Musa’s illicit activities. ‘Does your father know?’ / ‘My father always noes. He never yeses. Specially when he’s sick, then he noes all the time. I gotta get out. Can’t stick around the house with him yelling.[…]’”

   ““Heaven knows why a woman ‘Noes’!” / Clarrie nodded glumly. “And why she ‘Yesses’ in the end.””

2. To answer with “no”; to decline, reject.

   “Never accustom yourself to say ‘Yes,’—practise an emphatic and decisive enunciation of the far more dignified and important monosyllable, ‘No.’ […] Believe me, it is of the utmost importance (the advice is not of recent date) that you should No the world.”

   “BUDGET DIRECTOR SMITH / The President yessed his report […] SENATOR McCARRAN / He noed the President’s report”