aught

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) enPR: ôt, IPA: /ɔːt/

  Rhymes: -ɔːt

• (US) enPR: ôt, IPA: /ɔt/
• (cot–caught merger) enPR: ät, IPA: /ɑt/

• Audio (US)

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Etymology 1

From Middle English aught, ought, from Old English āht, from ā (“always", "ever”) + wiht (“thing", "creature”). More at aye, wight

Alternative forms

• ought

Pronoun

aught

1. anything whatever, any part.
   • 1748. David Hume. Enquiries concerning the human understanding and concerning the principles of moral. London: Oxford University Press, 1973. § 29.

     to other objects, which for aught we know, may be only in appearance similar

   • Addison

     But go, my son, and see if aught be wanting.

   • 1912: Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan of the Apes, Chapter 5

     His life among these fierce apes had been happy; for his recollection held no other life, nor did he know that there existed within the universe aught else than his little forest and the wild jungle animals with which he was familiar.

Translations

anything

• Azeri: nə isə (az)
• Bulgarian: нещо (bg) (nešto), каквото и да е (bg) (kakvoto i da e)
• Catalan: res (ca)
• Italian: qualche cosa (it)

• Portuguese: nada (pt)
• Russian: что-нибудь (ru) (štó-nibud’)
• Spanish: nada (es)

Noun

aught (plural aughts)

1. whit, the smallest part, iota.
2. (archaic) zero
3. The digit zero as the decade in years. For example, aught-nine for 1909 or 2009.

Translations

zero

• Bulgarian: нула (bg) (núla) f
• Portuguese: zero (pt)

• Russian: ноль (ru) (nol’) m, нуль (ru) (nul’) m

See also

• naught
• owt

Adverb

aught (not comparable)

1. (archaic) At all, in any degree, in any respect.
   • 1599, William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, Act 5 Scene 1

     [...] and if your love

     Can labour aught in sad invention,

     Hang her an epitaph upon her tomb,

     And sing it to her bones [...]

References

• aught in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913

Etymology 2

From Middle English aught, ought, from Old English ǣht, from āgan (“to owe", "to own”)

Alternative forms

• ought

Noun

aught (plural aughts)

1. Property; possession

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Sir Walter Scott to this entry?)

2. Duty; place; office

Verb

aught (third-person singular simple present aughts, present participle aughting, simple past and past participle aughted)

1. to own, possess
2. to owe, be obliged or obligated to

Adjective

aught (comparative more aught, superlative most aught)

1. possessed of

Etymology 3

From Middle English ahte, from Old English eahta (“eight”). More at eight.

Numeral

aught

1. Obsolete or dialectal form of eight.