▪ I. no, a.
(nəʊ)
Forms: α. 2–6 (9) na, (4 nai), 8–9 naa, nae, etc.; 6, 9 nea, 7 neay, 9 neah, nee(a, ney(e, ne, etc. β. 4–6 noo, 5, 7, noe, 3– no.
[Reduced form of nān, nōn none a., originally used only before consonants.]
No occurs in a considerable number of common phrases as no bones, no end, by no means, etc., which are treated under the various ns. In some cases, as no doubt, no wonder, etc., there is often an ellipse of the verb. For no other see other a. 5 b and 6 a; also otherwise A.
I. 1. Not any. a. Accompanied by other negatives (or redundant). Now only dial. or illiterate.
| a 1200 Moral Ode 80 in O.E. Hom. I. 165 Nis na [c 1250 no] lauerd swich se is crist. c 1205 Lay. 25311 Na [c 1275 no] gauel he nule bringe. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 304 Þat deol þat made Innogen no tonge telle ne may. 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 6802 For God no synne wyl þey nat lete. 1340 Ayenb. 83 No solas ne no confort me ne onder⁓vangþ bote of him. c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 1749 Lucretia, By no crafte hire beaute was not feyned. c 1400 tr. Secreta Secret., Gov. Lordsh. 63 Ne gyf þou no credence to no wymmen. c 1475 Rauf Coilȝear 19 Thair micht na folk hald na fute on the heich fell. a 1548 Hall Chron., Edw. IV, 216 b, The communaltie coulde not be compelled by no commaundement to tarye at home. 1567 Gude & Godlie B. (S.T.S.) 144 Lat neuer na euill thing vs befall. 1596 Spenser F.Q. v. xii. 11 Sith no redemption nigh she did nor heare, nor see. 1674 Answ. States General in Phenix (1708) I. 288 England had never no thoughts of securing this Right of the Flag by a formal Treaty. 1719 De Foe Crusoe i. (Globe) 57, I had lost no time, nor abated no Diligence. 1871 Mrs. H. Wood Dene Hollow xxxi, ‘'Tain't no good your stopping’, he..said. 1896 [see con v.]. 1897 [see class n. 5 b]. 1968 Listener 20 June 796/3 He's not going to be put in no poorhouse. |
b. Without other negative.
| α a 1300 Cursor M. 16 Wit sarazins wald þai na saght. c 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 2462 Na syn þan unrekend sal be, Þogh it war never swa prive. 1375 Barbour Bruce i. 371 Quhar it failȝeys, na wertu May be off price. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) Pref. 2 A flokk of schepe þat has na schephird. 1456 Sir G. Haye Law Arms (S.T.S.) 167 Nychtbouris gude that he had na clame to. 1508 Kennedy Flyting w. Dunbar 444 Thare is na lorde that will in seruice tak the. 1583 Leg. Bp. St. Androis 78 in Satir. Poems Reform., He had nea toung for to denye it. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 58 Another Ile,..quhair nae kynd of cattail is fund. Ibid. 78 Maid abrogat, and of na effecte. 1684 [Meriton] Yorksh. Dial. 26 It'l git neay Cawd, it's bedded up to th' Een. 1721 Ramsay Prospect Plenty 15 Nae nation in the warld. 1785 J. Hutton Bran New Wark (E.D.S.) 184 Naa prawling wolf, naa cunning fox iver escap'd my eye. 1786 Burns Dream vii, Let nae saving-fit Abridge your bonie Barges. 1804 Galloway Poems 69 (E.D.D.), In argument ne papist e'er could ding him. 1827 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 353 There's nae kindness like kindness frae the haun o' a woman. 1833 York Minster Screen 60 T'other had ne'a business there. |
| β 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. i. 9 Of oþer heuene þen heer holde þei no tale. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 7 The citees knewen no debat. c 1412 Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 32 Deth, fro which no wight lyvyng Defendyn hym may. c 1449 Pecock Repr. i. xviii. 102 Noo bischop or archideken or doctour. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 1 b, Specyally to suche that vnderstande no latyn. 1542 Udall in Lett. Lit. Men (Camden) 3 Noo sikenes, noo losse of worldly goodes, none ympresonyng, noo tormentes. 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iv. i. 97 There is no neede of any such redresse. 1615 W. Lawson Country Housew. Gard. (1626) 19 There is no tree like this for soundnesse. 1667 Pepys Diary 9 Aug., I perceive Sir W. Coventry does really make no difference between any man. a 1687 Petty Pol. Arith. (1690) Pref., That there is no Trade nor Employment for the People. 1712 W. Rogers Voy. R. World 419 They added, that they had no Embarkations, but one Ship. 1790 Burke Fr. Rev. 42 Our constitution has made no sort of provision towards rendering him..responsible. 1815 Jane Austen Emma xix, There is no comparison between them. 1839–52 Bailey Festus 417 Thou hadst no need, no business to have loved me. 1891 Law Times Rep. LXIII. 691/1 There was no evidence that Nunney had authority to arrest. |
c. In elliptic phrases.
For other phrases and proverbs, see the ns.
| 1531 Tindale Expos. 1 John Wks. (1573) 395/1 O Popishe forgiuenesse with whom it goeth after the common prouerbe, no peny no pardon. 1640 Bagshaw in Rushw. (1721) III. ii. 1343 Episcopacy is inseparable to the Crown of England; and therefore it is commonly now said, No Bishop no King, no Mitre no Scepter. c 1645 Howell Lett. II. xviii, I am of the Italians mind that said, Nulla nuova, buona nuova, no news, good news. 1701 Lond. Gaz. No. 3740/4 Deputations, commonly call'd ‘No Purchase no Pay’, for seizing Uncustomed and Prohibited Goods to certain Persons. 1751 J. Bridges (title) No foot, no horse. 1855 Bain Senses & Int. i. ii. §25 It seems as if we might say, no currents, no mind. |
† d. Any. Obs. rare—1.
| c 1500 Melusine 242 The Duches is brought to bed of the most fayrest sone that euer was seen in no land. |
e. no one, nobody, no person. (See one 24.)
| 1601 Shakes. Twel. N. ii. iv. 58 My part of death no one so true did share it. a 1719 Smalridge Serm (J.), No one who doeth good to those only..can ever be fully satisfied of his own sincerity. 1829 Southey Sir T. More (1831) II. 421 Such transactions as no one,..half a century ago, would have been ashamed of. 1861 Pycroft Agony Point (1862) 35 No one has room to do much more than jostle together. |
2. Qualifying a noun and adj. in close connexion, usually implying that an adj. of an opposite meaning would be more correct or appropriate.
For examples of no such (thing, etc.), see such a.
| c 1350 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1878) 17/1 All þouh þei made no gret nois, He onswerd, as he hed herd heore vois. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 46 Sche cast on me no goodly chiere. c 1449 Pecock Repr. iv. viii. 468 Thei be not necessarie neither thei ben in no notable degree better. c 1500 Trevelyan Papers (Camden) 98 Whiche will amounte, yf hyt be well handelyd, to no lyttle summe. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 41 It is upon no lyght consyderation omitted. 1597 Gerarde Herbal i. ii. 3 This grasse is vnpleasant, and no wholesome food for cattell. 1641 Burges Serm. 62 This is no Empiricall Dosis, but a Probatum est. 1671 Milton Samson 650 This one prayer yet remains,..No long petition. 1715 M. Davies Athen. Brit. I. 235 This sort of Meditation is still..in no small esteem and practice. 1772 Ann. Reg. i. 91 It makes no inconsiderable addition to the revenue of the crown. 1826 Disraeli Viv. Grey v. vii, With no pleased air. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. v. I. 528 On this man his party had long relied for services of no honourable kind. 1877 Tennyson Sir J. Franklin 4 Thou..Art passing on thy happier voyage now Toward no earthly pole. |
b. Preceded by the or personal pronoun. Now only with no small or little.
| 1559 in Strype Ann. Ref. (1709) I. ii. App. ix. 439 Falsifinge..the scriptures, to the no small admiration of all the learned readers. 1581 Mulcaster Positions v. (1887) 26 Which the most munificent God, by his no niggardishe nature, prouided for them both. 1647 Cowley Mistr., Request vi, Dost thou deny onely to me The no-great privilege of Captivitie? |
3. Qualifying a n. in the predicate: Not (a).
| 1388 Wyclif Jer. ii. 11 Certeynli thei ben no goddis. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 340 Who that is of man no king, The remenant is as no thing. c 1450 Holland Howlat 239 Thir ar na fowlis of reif. a 1500 in C. Trice-Martin Chanc. Proc. 15th c. (1904) 5 Saiying that it was noo season for a man of his ordre to walke so late. 1532 More Confut. Tindale Wks. 450/1, I take Moyses for no leder of y⊇ children of Israel. 1596 Harington Metam. Ajax Pref. (1814) 10 A stream that seems to be no stream, by corn fields that seem no fields, down a street no street. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 157 Great Personages, who otherwise are no Nymrods vpon earth. 1650 Bounds Publ. Obed. (ed. 2) 47 The remaining Members make no House. 1721 Wodrow Hist. Suff. Ch. Scot. (1838) I. i. ii. 112 Mr. Dickson replied, he well knew his grace was no coward. 1749 Smollett Gil Blas i. i, He chose a wife..who, though she was no chicken, brought me into the world ten months after her marriage. 1798 Ferriar Illustr. Sterne, etc. iii. 55 Sterne was no friend to gravity. 1815 Elphinstone Acc. Caubul (1842) I. 329 Wanton cruelty and insolence are no part of the Afghaun character. 1839–52 Bailey Festus 48 Inspiration cometh from above, And is no labour. 1895 Bookman Oct. 22/2 He was no ruler of consummate ability. |
b. Denoting approximation to nullity, as in it is no distance.
| 1832 J. P. Kennedy Swallow Barn II. xvii. 220 Which..would produce a cure ‘in almost no time’. 1868 G. G. Channing Early Recoll. Newport R.I. 143 The money was..arranged as to facilitate the payments in ‘no time’, understood in my day, to mean the shortest period. 1891 L. Falconer Mlle. Ixe vi. 165 [The mare] will get over to Carchester in no time. |
4. Qualifying a verbal n. or gerund in the predicate, denoting the impossibility of the action specified.
| 1560 Bible (Genev.) Nahum iii. 19 There is no healing of thy wounde. 1591 Shakes. Two Gent. ii. i. 161 Val. No, beleeue me. Speed. No beleeuing you indeed sir. 1641 Shute Sarah & Hagar (1649) 108 So the people were so impetuously set upon their lusts, that there was no speaking to them. 1650 Trapp Comm. Deut. iv. 25 Thou thinkest there is no removing thee. 1719 De Foe Crusoe ii. (Globe) 345 There was no keeping Friday in the boat. 1753 Gray's Inn Jrnl. No. 54 There is no going any where without meeting Pretenders in this Way. 1820 W. Irving Sketch Bk., Little Britain, Do what they might, there was no keeping down the butcher. 1850 Thackeray Pendennis xv, There's no accounting for tastes, sir. 1895 Shand Life Sir E. B. Hamley I. ii. 21 There was no mistaking the meaning of the invitation, and there was no declining it. |
II. In combination with ns. or adjs.
5. a. Denoting that the thing (or person) in question cannot properly be called by that name, owing to the absence of the specific qualities implied by it, as no-faith, no-form, no-jest, etc. (Very common after 1600.)
| 1565 T. Stapleton Fortr. Faith 103* Ye see a clere difference..betwene the doctrine..of our firste auncient faith, and of this vpstert no faith. 1610 B. Jonson Alch. i. i, A..thredden cloake That scarce would cover your no-buttocks. 1631 Weever Anc. Funeral Mon. 54 Inuenting..a new certaine no-forme of Liturgie to themselues. a 1704 T. Brown Praise Poverty Wks. 1730 I. 98 Laugh immoderately at his own no-jest. 1742 Fielding J. Andrews iv. vii, They..have been thoroughly frightened with certain no-persons called ghosts. 1786 A. M. Bennett Juvenile Indiscr. V. 220 Effeminacy, and these other nothings, that constitute the no-character of a modern beau. 1814 Jefferson Writ. (1830) IV. 239, I frankly confide to yourself these opinions, or rather no opinions of mine. 1850 Merivale Rom. Emp. I. (1865) VI. 182 The common story of Messalina's impudent no-marriage. 1880 Carnegie Pract. Trap. 13 A dog such as I have described, whatever be his breed or his no-breed. |
b. Denoting entire absence of the thing named.
In quot. 1948 the sense is ‘without the use of the hands’.
| 1603 Florio Montaigne ii. xii. (1632) 247 To make them feele the emptinesse, vacuitie, and no worth of man. 1649 Bp. Hall Cases Conscience iii. ix. (1654) 262 Under the pain of a no-remission. 1680 Dodwell Two Lett. To Rdr. 18 Subjects would discover..the no-necessity of those reasons produced for their Separation. 1700 T. Brown Lett. fr. Dead II. 204 Walking in the Middle Temple..to get them a Stomach to their No-dinners. 1796 Morse Am. Univ. Geog. I. 214 Dobchick or Notail. 1835 Court Mag. VI. 9/2 His cab is the perfection of ‘quiet’ no-pretence. Ibid. 49/2 We have named its absolute no-pretension as regards the self-supposed claims of its owner. 1896 Boscawen Bible & Monum. 166 The land of No-Return, the region of darkness. 1898 Westm. Gaz. 5 Sept. 3/3 It is the low prices which produce the ‘no-profit’. 1940 Ann. Reg. 1939 253 A vote of no-confidence was carried in the Lower Chamber. 1948 D. Ballantyne Cunninghams i. xviii. 92 Ralph showed off, riding no⁓hands and skidding in the loose metal. 1954 F. C. Avis Boxing Reference Dict. 75 No contest, a declaration of the referee that the fight is null and void, usually because both contestants are making no serious efforts at boxing. Ibid., No-count, a slipping to the floor of the ring but getting up again before the count begins. 1956 J. G. Porter in A. Pryce-Jones New Outl. Mod. Knowledge 142 Adaptable as he [sc. man] is, can he exist for any length of time under conditions of no-gravity? 1957 L. F. R. Williams State of Israel 158 The four years of the legislature's statutory life (which is, of course, always liable to be shortened by a vote of no-confidence). 1960 Times 5 July 18/2 Edwards has had 10 contests and won nine of them, featuring rather unluckily in a no-contest (or double disqualification). 1973 Houston (Texas) Chron. Mag. People, Places, Pleasures 14 Oct. 8/4 Agnew..pleaded no contest—in effect, guilty—to cheating on his income tax. |
c. With derivative ns. in various senses, as no-poperist, one who is for ‘no popery’; no-religionist, one who is of no religion; etc.
| 1827 Syd. Smith in Lady Holland Mem. (1855) II. 273 Jesuits abroad—Turks in Greece—No-Poperists in England! 1838 Hawthorne Amer. Note-bks. (1883) 169 A group of Universalists and no-religionists sat around him. 1882–3 Schaff Encycl. Relig. Knowl. III. 2167 The wave of no-sabbathism now sweeping from Europe to America. 1886 Pall Mall G. 28 July 3/1 The right of the Government to deal with No-Renters as with rebels. |
d. Used in various colloq. phrases, as no strings, no conditions or obligations; also attrib. (cf. string n.); no stuff, no joking; no sweat, no bother, no trouble.
| 1909 ‘O. Henry’ Options (1916) 50 I've told you.. my oral sentiments, and there's no strings to 'em. 1946 Mezzrow & Wolfe Really Blues (1957) 376 No stuff, no kidding. 1952 A. Huxley Let. 12 Oct. (1969) 658 The thing should start in a small way, but with adequate equipment, no strings and no red tape. 1955 Amer. Speech XXX. 118 No sweat, no strain n. phr. used adjectivally, easy, no trouble, no difficulty. 1960 Ibid. XXXV. 122 No sweat, the GI's reaction to an unpleasant, but necessary task. 1963 Daily Mail 11 Nov. 8/8 Mumble⁓mouth especially knows how to blow flicks that cop bread, no-sweat style (knows how to succeed in movies without really trying). 1965 Economist 6 Mar. 980/3 In effect, the family doctors will get a no-strings pay rise averaging 9 per cent. 1970 Times 18 Aug. 15 Following the February {pstlg}13m no-strings pay deal..union officials have been conducting a wages and conditions survey of motor plants in Britain. 1970 C. Major Dict. Afro-Amer. Slang 85 No stuff, expression that implies sincerity. 1972 ‘H. Howard’ Nice Day for Funeral iii. 45 He respects me as a person. No strings. 1972 Publishers Weekly 16 Oct. 17/1 Mrs Wallach complains that she cannot use plastic book jackets on books with maps on the inside covers. No sweat! We paste the book pocket..on the next inside page, [etc.]. 1973 K. Giles File on Death vi. 153 No sweat, mate... We're not looking for trouble. |
e. Denoting the complete emptying of the mind described in Buddhist, and esp. Zen, philosophy as no-mind, no-thought, etc.
| 1934 D. T. Suzuki Essays in Zen Buddhism III. ii. 84 ‘Mind is still subject to measurement. Who is the Buddha?’ ‘No-mind is he.’ 1949 ― Zen Doctrine of No-Mind 29 When..the seeing of self-nature has no reference to a specific state of consciousness, which can be logically or relatively defined as a something, the Zen Masters designate it in negative terms and call it ‘no-thought’ or ‘no mind’, wu-nien or wu-hsin. 1956 A. Huxley Adonis & Alphabet 34 No-thought not-thinks about the world in terms of no-things. Ibid., In Zen the virgin consciousness was called Wu-nien or Wu-hsin—no-mind or no-thought. 1959 C. C. Chang Practice of Zen ii. 59 The so-called No-mind (Chinese: Wu hsin) is not like day, wood, or stone, that is, utterly devoid of consciousness; nor does the term imply that the mind stands still without any reaction when it contacts objects or circumstances in the world. It..is natural and spontaneous at all times... There is nothing impure within it; neither does it remain in a state of impurity. When one observes his body and mind, he sees them as magic shadows or as a dream... When he reaches this point, then he can be considered as having arrived at the true state of No-mind. 1959 D. T. Suzuki Zen & Jap. Culture iv. 74 All things are accomplished when one attains a mind of ‘no-mind-ness’ according to the great Zen master. 1960 A. Koestler Lotus & Robot ii. x. 240 It [sc. Zen] proclaims to be the philosophy of no-mind (Wu-hsin), of no-thought (Wu-mien)..and of ‘going ahead without hesitation’. 1966 P. Kapleau Three Pillars of Zen ii. v. 201 Mindlessness, on the other hand, or ‘no-mindness’ as it has been called, is a condition of such complete absorption that there is no vestige of self⁓awareness. |
6. In attrib. phrases: a. Denoting objection or opposition to the thing in question, as no-popery man, etc.
| 1827 Edin. Rev. XLV. 437 Ready to join his No-Popery corps. 1840 Dickens Barn. Rudge xxxviii, I'm a No-Popery man, and ready to be sworn in. 1855 L. Hunt Old Crt. Suburb I. 127 Just in his..‘no-nonsense’ style; what his opponents call ‘heavy’. 1884 Pall Mall G. 10 Dec. 6/1 Stopping the supplies by adopting a No Rent manifesto. 1892 Daily News 11 Mar. 5/7 The no-surrender attitude which the vast majority of the men have assumed. |
b. Denoting absence of the thing named, as no-school poet, one belonging to no school; etc. Also, denoting absence of necessity for. See also no-fines a. (n.)
| 1832 Southey in Q. Rev. XLVII. 95 The other of these no-school poets favoured us with some samples of his poetry. 1858 Holmes Aut. Breakf. T. xii, A real, genuine, no-mistake Osiris. 1881 Times 6 Jan. 4/6 Similar volumes..on the Pycnogonids or no-body crabs. 1898 Daily News 13 Oct. 4/4 The Cape Ministry has resigned in consequence of the No-Confidence Vote on Tuesday night. 1902 R. Machray Night Side of London ii. 23 The clubs, both high-class and no-class, are not all closed. 1930 E. Pound XXX Cantos vii. 27 Brown-yellow wood, and the no colour plaster. 1936 ‘J. Beynon’ Planet Plane 58, I didn't think we were going to hit the no-gravity zone so soon. 1939 No class [see billiard-hall (billiards 2)]. 1955 N.Y. Times 13 Feb. iii. 8/1 The favorite fabric is the no-iron type. 1958 Economist 1 Nov. 435/2 Nobody really doubts that ‘no deposit’ business will also be done. 1961 P. White Riders in Chariot viii. 233 For Chrisake! Who am I to know what is up to every no-hope Jew that comes to the country? 1963 B. Fozard Instrumentation Nuclear Reactors xi. 132 The reading of the voltmeter may be corrected to zero under no-signal conditions. 1969 New Statesman 18 July 80/1 ‘It's a gas, man, it's a rave,’ says a no-bra girl. 1970 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 26 Sept. 1/5 (caption) Empty cans and no-deposit bottles lie around a tree. 1971 Flying (N.Y.) Apr. 18/2 The evidence seemed clear that the no-accident day had been moved from Thursday to Tuesday. 1972 Guardian 2 Nov. 10/3 A no-hope telephonist with an invalid mother, an illegitimate child and a bad communication problem. 1973 Times 19 Mar. 21/1 The United States Justice Department filed both civil and criminal suits. Ford entered a ‘no contest’ plea and last month was fined a total of $7m. 1973 Gagnon & Simon Sexual Conduct (1974) x. 291 The no-bra look is serving both males' fantasies and a return to naturalness. |
7. With adjectives: † a. With the force of non- or un-, as no-concluding, inconclusive; no-certain, uncertain. Obs.
| 1650 Cromwell Decl. Ld. Lieut. Irel., To try this no-concluding argument,..but yet well enough agreeing with your learning,—I give you this dilemma. 1658 Earl of Monmouth tr. Paruta's Wars Cyprus 15 Being allured by the no-certain promises of Princes. 1751 Coventry Hist. Pompey ii. ix. (1785) 66/1 A no-thinking scribbler of magazines. |
b. In parasynthetic combs., as no-coated, no-coloured, no-shaped, no-tongued.
| 1836–7 Dickens Sk. Boz, Scenes xvii, He was a brown-whiskered, white-hatted, no-coated cabman. 1875 Lanier Symphony 121, I speak for each no-tongued tree. 1887 Morris in Mackail Life (1899) II. 179 A queer little no-shaped slip cut off from some workshop. 1895 Outing XXVI. 338/1 This discolored, no-colored gown. 1916 Joyce Portrait of Artist (1969) i. 50 His nocoloured eyes looking through the glasses. |
▪ II. no, adv.1
(nəʊ)
[Several forms of different origin are included here. Those placed under α (in sense 1) represent OE. nó, f. ne ne + ó always, var. of á: see a adv. and o adv. The second group (β) contains the southern or midland representatives of OE. ná (see na adv.1); the later examples, however, are somewhat uncertain, and some of them may be misprints for not. In early northern and Scottish texts (γ) no is prob. a scribal alteration of original na or ne; but the later Scottish no (from c 1600) appears to be a reduced form of nōth for nocht nought (cf. dōther for dochter, and mou' for mouth).]
= not.
1. In ordinary uses. Now only Sc.
| α c 825 Vesp. Psalter liii. 5 Ða strongan..no foresettun god biforan ᵹesihðe heara. a 900 Cynewulf Christ 84 No ᵹebrosnad wearð mæᵹðhad se micla. 971 Blickl. Hom. 13 Ne herede heo hine no mid wordum anum. Ibid. 17 Se þe..bideþ þæs ecan leohtes, & no ne ᵹeblinneþ. c 1205 Lay. 7524 He ne blakede no. Ibid. 31816 Oðer brohte enne; þe oðer no brohte nenne. a 1225 Leg. Kath. 1963 Oðer, ȝef ha nule no, ha schal beon tohwiðeret. |
| β c 1200 Moral Ode 77 (Trin. Coll. MS.), Nis him no þing forholen..Ne bie hit no swo derne idon. a 1225 Ancr. R. 340 Þauh, no þe later, ‘Betere is þo þene no’. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 2236 Us sal ben hard If we no holden him non forward. 13.. K. Alis. 6925 No shaltow heorte and flesch hardye. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 5829 (Kölbing), For þai no seiȝen no socour. Ibid. 7224 No telle y ȝou nouȝt worþ an hawe. c 1350 Will. Palerne 1554, Alle men vpon molde no schuld my liif saue. a 1450 Fysshynge w. Angle (1883) 4 He may not gretly lose but a lyne.., so then hys loste ys no grevous. 1588 Parke tr. Mendoza's Hist. China 8 They doe no leaue one foote of grounde vnsowen. 1628 Doughty Church Schismes 22 Papistrie thwarts and cuts the very life-strings of a sauing beleefe. Semi-pelagianisme no so. 1661 P. Henry Diaries & Lett. (1882) 79 My Father will no cease unlesse my Vncle acknowledge..that hee hath done him wrong. 1682 Dryden & Lee Dk. Guise ii. ii, No yet, my Lord of Guise, no yet. |
| γ a 1300 Cursor M. 7628 Awai þan drou him son daui, Bot saul dred him no for-þi. c 1325 Metr. Hom. 141 No gif thou of the self na tale. 13.. Cursor M. 11781 (Gö tt), Þis child, if he no war god of might, vr goddes alle had standen up right. 1487 Barbour's Bruce ix. 471 (Cambr. MS.), That him sair repent sall he..May fall, quehen he no mend it may. a 1510 Douglas K. Hart ii. 303 Be no wraith with me, my lady deir! 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. I. 272 At this time I no will Onto the Romanis do injure or ill. Ibid. II. 334 For caus that thai no wald Resist the wrang. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. ii. 133 marg., Be the law ȝoung and tendir of ȝeiris ar no permitted to haue the administratione of the Rep[ublic]. 1611 Sir W. Mure Misc. Poems Wks. (S.T.S.) I. 49 Cease, serpent, seik no to subdue And kill ane hert. 1629 Ibid. 218 To doe who care no, much delight to prat. 1725 Ramsay Gentle Sheph. i. ii. 70 He's get his will: why no? Ibid. 131 The laird seeks in his rent: 'Tis no to gie. 1786 Burns Mount. Daisy ii, Alas! it's no thy neebor sweet, The bonie Lark. 1799 Mitchell Scotticisms 60, I have walked forty miles, and yet am no wearied. 1816 Scott Antiq. xliv, I maunna say muckle about them that's no weel and no very able. 1861 Ramsay Remin. Ser. ii. 182 Is it the fashion for them no to go on? a 1894 R. L. Stevenson Weir of Hermiston (1896) viii. 245 Oh, my dear, that'll no dae! 1931 A. J. Cronin Hatter's Castle ii. xiii. 435 What was't he said, ‘a loyal wife and a devoted mother,’ wasn't no? 1973 People's Jrnl. (Inverness & Northern Counties ed.) 28 July 4/5 Who says the Scots are a dour lot? No' us anyway! 1975 M. Russell Murder by Mile iii. 22 What's holding ye up?.. Was the tyre no' checked? |
2. Expressing the negative in an alternative choice, possibility, etc. (Usu. whether..or no.)
In earlier ME. non is employed in the same way (see none adv.); this makes it probable that the use originated in sentences (such as quots. c 1440 and 1708) in which no was adjectival.
| 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton) v. i. (1859) 71 To this hows all other ben subget, and servauntes, whether they wylle or noo. c 1440 Generydes 2588, I will, she sayde, do as ye councell me: Comforte or no. 1535 Coverdale Judith ix. 20 Yf no, then go fyre out from Abimelech. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 234 b, He causeth hym to take xiii Duckates, whether he wolde or noe. 1592 Greene Upst. Courtier Wks. (Grosart) XI. 247 He..asketh whether he please to be shauen or no. 1664 Power Exp. Philos i. 2 By which he tryes and feels all objects, whether they be edible or no. 1708 Swift Sacram. Test Wks. 1751 IV. 164 Many of them care not Three-pence whether there be any Church, or no. 1784 Unfortunate Sensibility I. 182 Whether or no, this coat shall be my favourite coat. 1813 Parr Let. to J. C. Moore 15 Oct., I am uncertain whether or no to notice very shortly some of his previous..exploits. 1853 Whewell in Todhunter Acc. Writ. (1876) II. 393 Whether or no there be virtue or vice in other worlds. 1892 Mrs. H. Ward David Grieve i. vii, It was a half-baked eloquence... But half-baked or no, David rose to it greedily. |
† 3. Used in a rejoinder or retort having the form of a negative question. Obs.
| 1525 Ld. Berners Froiss. II. cxix. [cxv.] 342, I wyll nat entre there... No wyll? quod Geronette. a 1553 Udall Royster D. i. iv, R. This is not she. M. No is? Ibid. ii. iv, C. What was his name? An. We asked not. C. No did? 1581 Rich Farew. (1846) 144 The Doctour..aunswered, that he never writte letter unto her... No have? (q, Mistres Doritie) read you then heare your owne lines. 1595 Shakes. John iv. ii, Io. I had a mighty cause To wish him dead, but thou hadst none to kill him. H. No had (my Lord?). 1621 Bp. R. Montagu Diatribæ 35 You professe your ignorance thus: Non omnino capimus quid sibi velit. No doe? That is marvell that you do not capere. |
▪ III. no, adv.2
(nəʊ)
Also α. 1–6 na, 8–9 Sc. nae, north. nea.
[OE. ná, identical with na adv.1 Cf. prec. 1 β.]
With comparatives: Not any, not at all (better, etc.); no better than (one) should (or ought to) be: see better a. 5. See also no less, no more.
| α a 1000 Boeth., Metr. xxv. 29 ᵹif he wyrsa ne bið, ne wene ic his na beteran. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 129 Heo weren ipult ut of paradise and ne mehten þer naleng etstonden. c 1200 Ormin 13163 Þeȝȝ nolldenn nohht tatt boc Flæshliȝ na lenngre follȝhenn. a 1300 Cursor M. 12366 For leons durst þai cum na nerr. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xviii (Egipciane) 226 Hayre scho had, quhyt & streke, rekand na forthire na hir neke. c 1470 Gol. & Gaw. 109 Na forthir he faris, bot foundis away. 1508 Dunbar Tua Mariit Wemen 200 He is at Venus werkis na war na he semys. 1580 Hay in Catholic Tract. (S.T.S.) 46 In the receaving of it thair is na farder profite. 1786 Burns Answ. Tailor's Ep. x, Gelding's nae better than 'tis ca't. 1790 Mrs. Wheeler Westmld. Dial. (1821) 12, I'll bide nea langer, sea gang I will. |
| β a 1250 Owl & Night. 42 Heo [the owl] ne myhte no leng bileue. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. C. 85 At alle peryles..I aproche hit no nerre. c 1400 Land Troy Bk. 4186 Thei sayde thei myght no betre do. c 1440 Jacob's Weil 212 Þou owyst to sellyn it hym no derere þan þou mayst haue þerfore in markett. 1461 Paston Lett. II. 5 We send no er un to you be cause we had non certynges tyl now. 1585 T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. i. vi. 4 b, A small fountaine beeing no higher set then the pavement. 1590 Spenser F.Q. ii. ix. 21 No lenger time So goodly workemanship should not endure. 1621 Burton Anat. Mel. (1652) 151 'Tis horse-play this, and those jests..are no better then injuries. 1697 W. Dampier Voy. 467 Being out of hopes to find their Habitations, we searched no farther. 1711 Steele Spect. No. 80 ¶1 They now no longer enjoyed the Ease of Mind..in which they were formerly happy. 1790 Burke Fr. Rev. Sel. Wks. II. 35 If they had been able to contrive no better remedy against arbitrary power. 1836 Thirlwall Greece II. xi. 59 The two factions had no sooner accomplished the object..than they began to quarrel. 1891 L. Falconer Mlle. Ixe vi. 165, I hope that unfortunate fellow is no worse. |
† b. None (the fairer, etc.). Obs. rare (except in notheless and nothemo).
| a 1000 Exod. 399 Fyrst ferhðbana no þy fæᵹra wæs. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 236 Hit com no þe later as he hadde iseyd. |
▪ IV. no, adv.3 and n.
(nəʊ)
Also 3 noa.
[Southern and midland form of na adv.2]
A. adv.
1. A word used to express a negative reply to a question, request, etc., or to introduce a correction of an erroneous opinion or assumption on the part of another person.
On the distinction between no and nay, see nay adv.1
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 222 Noa, he seiðe, [I] ne mei nout makien þeos to suneȝen þuruh ȝiuernesse. a 1250 Owl & Night. 997 Yet þu ayschest hwi ic ne vare Into oþer londe & singe þare. No; hwat scholde ich among heom do? c 1320 Cast. Love 1099 No, ac er he dilyuered be, Þou most al so muche delyuere me. c 1350 Will. Palerne 2701 No, madame, seide hire douȝter, marie þat graunt. 1382 Wyclif Zech. iv. 5 Where thou wost not what ben these thingus? And Y saide, No, my lord. 1418 26 Polit. Poems 63 To kepe his comaundement þey say no. 1535 Coverdale John i. 21 Art thou the Prophet? And he answered: No. 1591 Shakes. Two Gent. i. iii. 91 My heart accords thereto; And yet a thousand times it answers no. 1646 Crashaw Steps to Temple Poems (1858) 78 When heav'n bids come, who can say no? 1695 Anc. Const. Eng. 4 No sure, not at all. 1718 G. Sewell Procl. Cupid 8 The Fools say, Yes; but wiser Chaucer, No. 1766 Goldsm. Vic. W. xiii, No, cries the Dwarf,..no, I declare off. 1817 Parl. Deb. 413 On the question that the bill do pass, being finally put, the cry of ‘No’, from the Opposition side, was very loudly pronounced. 1853 Harper's Mag. Feb. 402/1 This is the gentleman who can't say no. 1853 T. C. Haliburton Sam Slick's Wise Saws I. v. 119 You first of all force yourself into my cabin, won't take no for an answer, and then complain of oncivility. 1861 G. H. Lewes Let. 20 Aug. in Geo. Eliot Lett. (1954) III. 446 She allows herself to be preyed upon dreadfully by the boys—she can't say No. 1879 Meredith Egoist vii, He half refuses. I do not take no from him. 1884 Tennyson Becket iv. i, Eleanor. Wilt thou love me? Geoffrey. No; I only love mother. 1930 W. S. Churchill My Early Life iv. 74 Come on now, all you young men... Don't take no for an answer, never submit to failure. 1961 Family Jrnl. Dec. 15/3 ‘But he would not take {oqq}No{cqq} for an answer,’ she went on. 1961 Listener 21 Dec. 1065/2 He was made Minister of Labour in a season when the Government's economic policy meant saying ‘no’ to wage demands. 1974 M. Butterworth Man in Sopwith Camel viii. 89 I'm warning you that I'm not taking no for an answer. 1975 C. Storr Chinese Egg vii. 41 ‘I can manage. You keep sitting down.’ ‘I shan't say, No. It's a long drag up to St. Monica's.’ |
| ellipt. 1857 Toulmin Smith Parish 62 The whole number present at the meeting must range themselves, aye and no, on the two opposite sides of the room. 1893 Gladstone in Daily News 14 Feb. 4/6 Then I propose the question in Parliamentary form, ‘Aye or no’. |
† b. After verbs of thinking or implying. Obs.
| 1601 Bp. W. Barlow Defence 7 We dullard Protestantes thinke no. 1621 Bp. R. Montagu Diatribæ 388 For my part I thinke no, vnlesse he held possessions in the Land of Promise. 1634 Canne Necess. Separ. (1849) 243 His words import positively no, but we are sure yes, and so will every wise man..affirm too. |
c. Used interrogatively.
| c 1374 Chaucer Troylus ii. 1162 ‘Trewely I nil no lettre wryte.’ ‘No? than wol I’, quod he. a 1553 Udall Royster D. ii. iv, T. Yet can I not yonder craftie boy see nor meete. C. No? 1884 Tennyson Becket v. iii, Does he breathe? No? No, Reginald, he is dead. |
2. Repeated for the sake of emphasis or earnestness.
| a 1500 Assembly of Ladies 63 The povre pensees were not diloged there; No, no! god wot, her place was every⁓where! a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. V 61 b, No, no, I wyll not so accomplishe your cloked request. 1630 Dekker 2nd Pt. Honest Wh. i. i, No, no, no, sir, no; I cannot abide to haue money ingender. 1667 Milton P.L. ix. 913 Loss of thee Would never from my heart; no no, I feel The Link of Nature draw me. 1721 De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 70 No, no, I took care of that. 1791 Boswell Johnson an. 1775, I answered, also smiling, ‘No, no, Sir; that will not do’. 1846 Dickens Battle of Life i, ‘There is not a truer heart than Alfred's in the world!’ ‘No—no,..perhaps not’. |
3. Introducing a more emphatic or comprehensive statement, followed by not, or nor. no, you don't: see do v. 29 b.
| 1369 Chaucer Dethe Blaunche 280, I trowe no man hadde the wit To conne wel my sweven rede; No, not Ioseph. 1509 Barclay Shyp of Folys (1874) II. 304 No wylde beste: no: nat the mighty bere. 1581 Fulke in Confer. ii. (1584) L iiij b, We are not iustified by them, no nor by faith, other⁓wise then instrumentally. 1601 Holland Pliny I. 383 There growes nothing in it good to make ointments, no nor nothing throughout all Europe. 1636 Heylin Hist. Sabbath 57, I say there was none kept, no nor none commanded. 1721 De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 137 The Scots never appeared, no, not so much as their scouts. 1774 Burke Sp. Amer. Tax. Sel. Wks. I. 135 He never stirred from his ground; no, not an inch. 1862 Tennyson Idylls, Ded. 9 Who spake no slander, no, nor listened to it. 1884 ― Becket Prol., Thou art but deacon, not yet bishop, No, nor archbishop. |
b. Introducing a correction or contradiction.
| 1616 Drummond of Hawthornden Poems, Sonn. xiii, You her words, words, no, but golden chains. 1702 De Foe Shortest Way w. Dissenters (1703) 2 Now they cry out Peace, Union, Forbearance, and Charity... No, Gentlemen, the Time of Mercy is past. 1825 Spirit Publ. Jrnls. 342 That class of persons was composed of men—no, he could not call them men..—of individuals. |
B. n.
† 1. without no, beyond denial, certainly. (Cf. nay adv.1 3.) Obs.
| c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 118 (Kölbing), Ac Inglond was yhoten þo Michel Breteyne, wiþ outen no. Ibid. 307 So þai deden, wiþ outen no. |
2. An utterance of the word no; an instance of its use; a denial.
| 1588 Shakes. L.L.L. v. ii. 413 Henceforth my woing minde shall be exprest In russet yeas, and honest kersie noes. 1622 Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d' Alf. ii. 202 It is hee that can giue you an I, or a No, whether I shall goe or stay. 1685 Gracian's Courtier's Orac. 15 The gracefull manner so guilds and sets off a No, as to make it more esteemed than an ill seasoned Yea. 1736 Fielding Pasquin i. Wks. 1882 X. 139 Let the audience know they can speak, if it were buy an ay or a no. 1792 A. Young Trav. France 129 She determined..to go to church,..and give a solemn no instead of a yea. 1825 Spirit Publ. Jrnls. 183 As two noes will make a yes. 1831 Carlyle Sart. Res. ii. vii. (heading), The Everlasting No. 1865 Ruskin Eth. Dust (1883) 97 Resolutely whispered ‘No's’. |
b. A negative vote or decision.
| 1589 Marprel. Epit. P iij, Here then is the puritans I, for the permanencie of this government, and M. doctors no. 1654 H. L'Estrange Chas. I (1655) 119 When the same parity of reasoning was urged, Bellarmines No was produced. 1886 Gladstone Election Address, With you..it rests to deliver the great Aye or No, on your choice. |
3. † a. The negative side or party. Obs. rare.
| 1620 Jrnl. Ho. Comm. 13 Feb. I. 520 Question whether the I or Noe to go out. The Noe yielded, before the Division of the House. |
b. pl. Those who vote on the negative side in a division.
| 1657 Burton's Diary (1828) I. 324 A member stood up and said, that the Noes in the former question had it. 1669 Marvell Wks. (Grosart) II. 289 The ayes proved 138 and the noes 129. 1710 Acc. Distemper Tom Whigg ii. 50 The No's fronting to the East, the Yea's to the West. 1796 Hatsell Prec. Proc. Ho. Comm. (ed. 3) II. 82 note, If this question for adjournment takes place before four o'clock in the afternoon, and there is a division upon it, the Yeas go forth; if after four o'clock, the Noes. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. vi. II. 26 The Ayes were one hundred and eighty-two and the Noes one hundred and eighty-three. |
Hence no v., intr. to say no (to one); trans. to answer (one) with no. nonce-uses.
| 1820 Blackw. Mag. VIII. 271 Yes-ing and No-ing to the great man's will. 1835 Court Mag. VI. 168/1 It is of the utmost importance..that you should No the world. |
▪ V. † no, conj.1 Obs.
[var. of na conj.1]
Nor.
| c 1205 Lay. 17053 Ne recche ich noht..his seoluer no his goldes no his claðes no his hors. a 1300 Sarmun xi. in E.E.P. (1862) 2 Silk no sendale nis þer none no bise no no meniuer. 1303 R. Brunne Handl. Synne 6734 He..to þe pore dyd euyl yn dede No halp hym noȝt yn hys nede. 1338 ― Chron. (1810) 56 Spare it neuer a dele, Noiþer man no beste, no manere no no toun. c 1400 Gamelyn 22 Had þei no rest nother nyght no day. c 1470 Henry Wallace v. 779 That wood..was nothir thik no lang. 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. I. 61 Stakkis no stoir into na stait ma stand. |
▪ VI. † no, conj.2 Obs. Sc.
[var. of na conj.2]
Than.
| 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. II. 346 Mekle mair..He said to him no I will tell ȝow heir. Ibid. III. 197 Moir sicker wes in gudlie haist to fle, No to remane. |