nothing
958
good) | It cost next to nothing. (=almost nothing) 2 some-
thing of no importance: She's nothing to me. | They think
nothing of walking 20 miles. | 'Is there anything good on the
telly tonight?' 'Nothing in particular.' 3 AmE zero (especially
in sports results): We beat them ten to nothing. 4 for noth-
ing: a) for no money; free: I got this bicycle for nothing; my
friend gave me it when she bought a new one. b) for no
purpose; with no good result: All our preparations were/
went for nothing because the exam was cancelled. → see also
GOOD-FOR-NOTHING 5 nothing but only: He's nothing but a
criminal. 6 nothing doing slang no; I won't: 'Will you lend
me £5?' 'Nothing doing.' 7 nothing for it no other way
possible: With the bridge destroyed, there was nothing for it
but to swim. 8 nothing if not (used to add force to an
expression) very: He's nothing if not determined. (=he's very
determined) 9 nothing much infml not much; very little:
There's nothing much happening this week. 10 nothing to
do with (having) no connection with: My affairs have/are
nothing to do with you. 11 nothing to it no difficulty in it:
Anyone can ride a bike – there's nothing to it. → see also
SWEET NOTHINGS, to say nothing of (SAY¹) and SOMETHING
(USAGE)
nothing² adv (in certain phrases) in no way; not at all: Your
house is nothing like ours. | A hundred dollars for a room –
that's nothing short of (=it's almost the same as) robbery. |
(BrE) He failed the test six times but nothing daunted (=not at
all discouraged) he decided to take it again.
noth·ing·ness /'nʌθŋnəs/ n [U] the state of being nothing;
not being: Is there only nothingness after death?
no·tice¹ /'nɒtɪs/ n 1 [C] a written or printed statement
giving information or directions to the public: They
announced the birth of their baby by putting a notice in the
newspaper. | The notice on the wall says 'No smoking'. | The
workers put up a notice announcing a mass meeting. 2 [U] a)
warning or information about something that is going to
happen: These rules are subject to change without notice. |
Can you be ready at ten minutes' notice? (=if I tell you only
ten minutes before) | The office is closed until further notice.
(=from now until another change is made) | If you want to
reserve a room you have to give them a few days' notice. b)
formal warning of the end of an agreement: I'm fed up with
this job, I'm giving in my notice tomorrow. | The landlady has
given me notice to quit. (=has told me I will have to leave
my house, room etc) | If the company wants to dismiss me,
they have to give me three months' notice. 3 [U] attention:
Don't take any notice of (=pay no attention to) what he
says. | It has come to my notice/not escaped my notice (=I have
noticed or been told) that some of you have been missing
classes. 4 [C often pl.] a statement of opinion, especially in a
newspaper, about a new book, play etc; REVIEW: The new play
got mixed notices. (=some good, some bad)
notice² v [T; not in progressive forms] to pay attention (to) with
the eyes, other senses, or mind; OBSERVE: She was wearing a
new dress, but he didn't even notice (it). | [+obj+v-ing] Did you
notice anyone leave/leaving the house? | [+wh-] Did you notice
whether I locked the door? | [+(that)] 'I noticed (that) he was
looking very nervous.' 'Yes, so I noticed.' | a young actress
trying to get herself noticed (=to become publicly known)
no·tice·a·ble /'nəʊtɪsəbəl/ adj worth noticing or easily
noticed; SIGNIFICANT: a noticeable drop in the amount of
crime | The damage to my car is hardly noticeable. —bly adv:
noticeably fewer people | Crime has decreased noticeably.
'notice ,board BrE || bulletin board AmE — n a board on a
wall which notices may be fixed to: If you look on the notice
board, you'll find details of tomorrow's classes.
no·ti·fi·a·ble /'nəʊtɪfaɪəbəl/ adj tech, especially BrE (especially
of certain diseases) needing by law to be reported to an
office of public health: Typhoid, cholera etc are notifiable
diseases.
no·ti·fi·ca·tion /ˌnəʊtɪfɪ'keɪʃən/ n fml [C usually sing.;U] (the
act of giving) warning or information: If you decide to go
ahead with the rebuilding scheme, can you give us some
notification?
no·ti·fy /'nəʊtɪfaɪ/ v [T(Ø)] to tell (someone), especially for-
mally; INFORM: to notify the police of a crime | [+obj+that]
Please notify all staff that the inspectors will be here on
Monday.
no·tion /'nəʊʃən/ n 1 an idea, belief, or opinion in someone's
mind; CONCEPT: an education system based on the old-
fashioned notion of women as home-makers | [+that] the old
notion that the sun moved round the Earth | [+wh-] I haven't
the faintest notion (=I have no idea at all) what you're talking
about. 2 a sudden desire; WHIM: [+to-v] She took/had a sudden
notion to visit all her relatives. → see also NOTIONS
no·tion·al /'nəʊʃənəl/ adj 1 existing only in the mind, not in
practice; THEORETICAL: to give the object a notional
price 2 tech (of a word) having an actual meaning in a
sentence: 'Have' in 'I have an apple' is notional; it means
'possess'. → compare RELATIONAL
no·tions /'nəʊʃənz/ n [P] especially AmE small things for
sewing or other useful purposes, sold in one part of a large
shop: You'll find that in notions, on the third floor.
no·to·ri·e·ty /ˌnətə'raɪəti/ n [U] the state of being notori-
ous: His daring escape from prison gained him a certain
notoriety.
no·to·ri·ous /nəʊ'tɔːriəs, nɔː-/ adj [(for)] derog famous or
widely known for something bad: a notorious murderer |
This airport is notorious for its bad security. → see FAMOUS
(USAGE) —ly adv: a notoriously inefficient company —ness
n [U]
No·tre Dame /ˌnɒtrə 'dɑːmɪlˌnətər-/ a famous CATHEDRAL
(=a large important church) in central Paris, which is a
beautiful GOTHIC building from the 12th century, and a
popular place for tourists to visit → see also HUNCHBACK OF
NOTRE DAME
Notre Dame, University of /ˌnɒtrə 'dɑːmɪlˌnəʊtər
'deɪm/ also Notre Dame a private Catholic university in
Indiana, US, which is known especially for having a very
good American football team
Not·ting·ham /'nɒtɪŋəmɪl'nɔː-/ an industrial city in Not-
tinghamshire in central England. Its industries include chemi-
cals, engineering, and clothing, but it is especially known as a
place where LACE (=very fine cloth with patterns of very
small holes) is made. The stories of ROBIN HOOD take place in
this area.
Nottingham 'Forest a well-known English football team
from Nottingham
Not·ting·ham·shire /'nɒtɪŋəmʃɪər ǁ 'nɔː-/ written abbrev.
Notts. a COUNTY in central England consisting mainly of
farmland, and also known for its coal mines, most of which
have now closed down → see also SHERWOOD FOREST
Not·ting Hill Car·ni·val, the /ˌnɒtɪŋ hɪl 'kɑːnɪvəlɪlˌnɔː-
'kɑːr-/ a street CARNIVAL that takes place in the Notting Hill
area of West London in August every year, mostly involving
black people and known for the colourful COSTUMES worn
and the steel band music played
Notts. /nɒtsɪlnɑːts/ written abbrev. for NOTTINGHAMSHIRE
not·with·stand·ing /ˌnɒtwɪθ'stændɪŋ, -wɪð-ǀˌnɑːt-/ prep
fml in spite of (used after its object): They are determined to go
ahead with the plan, notwithstanding widespread public
opposition. | They went ahead, public opposition notwith-
standing. —notwithstanding adv
nou·gat /'nuːgɑːǀ-gæt/ n [C;U] (a small piece of) a sticky pink
or white sweet made of sugar, nuts, bits of fruit etc
nought /nɔːt/ n 1 [C] BrE (the figure) 0; zero: 0.6 is usually
read 'nought point six', and .06 is usually read 'point nought
six'. → see ZERO (USAGE) 2 [U] especially old use or lit nothing;
NAUGHT
,noughts and 'crosses BrE || tick-tack-toe AmE — n [U]
a game in which two players take turns to write O or X in a
pattern of nine squares, trying to win with a row of three Os
or three Xs
noun /naʊn/ n a word or group of words that is the name of a
person (such as Mary or teacher or police officer), a place (such
as France or school), a thing or activity (such as coffee or
football), or a quality or idea (such as danger or happiness).
Nouns can be used as the subject or object of a verb (as in The
teacher arrived or We like the teacher) or as the object of a
PREPOSITION (as in good at football). → see also COMMON
NOUN, COUNT NOUN, PROPER NOUN, VERBAL NOUN
nour·ish /'nʌrɪʃɪl'nɜːrɪʃ, 'nʌ-/ v [T] 1 to give (someone)
what is needed in order to live, grow, and stay healthy: Milk
is a nourishing drink. | a well-nourished baby → see also
UNDERNOURISHED 2 (of a person) to keep (a feeling, plan etc)
alive; ENTERTAIN: to nourish the hope of a trip abroad