nothing
Not anything
هیچ، هیچی
She said nothing
او هیچ چیز نگفت.
Oxford Essential Dictionary
nothing
pronoun
not anything; no thing:
There's nothing in this bottle – it's empty.
I've finished all my work and I've got nothing to do.
Don't leave the baby there with nothing on (= not wearing any clothes) – he'll get cold.
be or have nothing to do with somebody or something to have no connection with somebody or something:
That question has nothing to do with what we're discussing.
Keep out of this – it's nothing to do with you.
for nothing
1 for no money same meaning free:
You can have these books for nothing. I don't want them.
2 without a good result:
I went to the station for nothing – she wasn't on the train.
nothing but only:
He eats nothing but salad.
nothing like not the same as somebody or something in any way:
He's nothing like his brother.
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
nothing
I. noth‧ing1 S1 W1 /ˈnʌθɪŋ/ BrE AmE pronoun
[Language: Old English; Origin: nan thing, nathing 'no thing']
1. not anything or no thing:
Nothing ever happens in this town.
There’s nothing in this box.
There was nothing else the doctors could do.
He had nothing more to say.
We know nothing about her family.
I couldn’t just stand by and do nothing.
I promised to say nothing about it to anyone.
We’ve heard nothing from her for weeks.
There’s absolutely nothing to be ashamed of.
‘Do you know much about business?’ ‘Nothing at all.’
She had eaten virtually nothing at supper.
There’s nothing wrong with the data.
There’s nothing new about this.
A brief search was made but they found nothing untoward.
2. nothing but only:
She’d had nothing but bad luck.
3. have nothing against somebody/something if you have nothing against someone or something, they do not annoy or offend you:
I have nothing against him personally.
4. something which is considered unimportant, not interesting, or not worth worrying about:
‘What have you been doing?’ ‘Nothing. Just sitting here.’
There’s nothing on television tonight.
‘What did you do last weekend?’ ‘Oh, nothing much.’
Politics meant nothing (=was not important) to me for years.
The meal was nothing special (=it was not unusual or interesting) – just fish with a cheese sauce.
5. especially American English zero SYN nil British English:
We beat them ten to nothing.
6. have/be nothing to do with somebody/something if you have nothing to do with someone or something, or if someone or something has nothing to do with you, you are not involved or connected with it:
He said that he had nothing to do with the decision.
As I said, it’s nothing to do with me.
That’s got nothing to do with you.
I want nothing to do with (=do not want to be involved) the whole thing.
My staff had nothing whatsoever to do with this.
7. for nothing
a) without paying for something or being paid for something:
Why pay a plumber when my brother will do it for nothing?
b) if you do something for nothing, you make an effort but do not get the result you want:
We went all that way for nothing.
8. no money or payment at all:
This service will cost you nothing.
When a car has done that many miles, it’s worth nothing.
9. there’s nothing like something used to say that something is very good:
There’s nothing like a long hot bath after a day’s climbing.
10. there’s nothing in/to something used to say that what people are saying about someone or something is not true:
It seems there’s nothing in the rumours that she’s pregnant.
11. if nothing else used to emphasize one good quality or feature that someone or something has, while suggesting that it might be the only good one:
If nothing else, the report points out the need for better math education.
12. come to nothing if a plan or action comes to nothing, it does not continue or does not achieve anything
13. be nothing if not something used to emphasize a particular quality that someone or something has:
You’ve got to admit – he’s nothing if not persistent.
14. nothing doing spoken used to refuse to do something
15. (there’s) nothing to it spoken used to say that something is easy to do:
Anyone can use a computer. There’s nothing to it!
16. it was nothing/think nothing of it spoken used when someone has thanked you a lot for something you have done for them:
‘Thank you so much.’ ‘Oh, it was nothing.’
17. nothing of the sort/kind spoken used to say strongly or angrily that something is not true or will not happen:
‘I’ll pay.’ ‘You’ll do nothing of the sort!’
18. have nothing on somebody informal if someone has nothing on you, they are not better than you at something:
She’s got nothing on you when it comes to writing.
19. there’s nothing for it but to do something British English used when there is only one thing you can do in a particular situation:
There was nothing for it but to go back the way we came.
⇨ sweet nothings at ↑sweet1(13), ⇨ to say nothing of at ↑say1(46), ⇨ nothing on earth at ↑earth1(9)
• • •
GRAMMAR
Do not use nothing with another negative word (eg 'not'). Use anything:
▪ I could not find anything suitable (NOT I could not find nothing suitable).
Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
nothing
noth·ing [nothing nothings] [ˈnʌθɪŋ] [ˈnʌθɪŋ] pronoun
1. not anything; no single thing
• There was nothing in her bag.
• There's nothing you can do to help.
• The doctor said there was nothing wrong with me.
• Nothing else matters to him apart from his job.
• It cost us nothing to go in.
• (BrE) He's five foot nothing (= exactly five feet tall).
2. something that is not at all important or interesting
• ‘What's that in your pocket?’ ‘Oh, nothing.’
• We did nothing at the weekend.
more at all or nothing at all det., stop at nothing at stop v., sweet nothings at sweet adj.
Idioms: for nothing ▪ have nothing on somebody ▪ not for nothing ▪ nothing but ▪ nothing if not ▪ nothing less than ▪ nothing like ▪ nothing much ▪ nothing to do with somebody ▪ nothing to it ▪ nothing to somebody ▪ there is nothing for it ▪ there is nothing in something ▪ there's nothing like something
Word Origin:
Old English nān thing (see no, thing).
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition
nothing / ˈnʌθ.ɪŋ / pronoun
A2 not anything:
There's nothing in the drawer - I took everything out.
Nothing I could say would cheer her up.
I have nothing new to tell you.
There's nothing else (= no other thing) we can do to help.
There's nothing much (= not very much) to do in our village.
The story was nothing but (= only) lies.
US The score is Yankees three, Red Sox nothing (= no points) .
be/have nothing to do with sb/sth B2 to have no connection or influence with someone or something:
We are nothing to do with the firm that has the offices next door.
In the evening he likes to read books and articles that have/are nothing to do with his work.
be/mean nothing to have no importance or value:
Money is nothing to him.
be/have nothing to do with sb B2 to be a matter or subject that someone has no good reason to know about or be involved with:
I wish he wouldn't offer advice on my marriage - it's nothing to do with him.
for nothing free or without paying:
I got this picture for nothing from a friend.
B2 with no good result or for no purpose:
He queued for two hours and (all) for nothing - there were no seats left.
Let us make sure that these brave men did not die for nothing.
nothing on no clothes on your body:
She sleeps with nothing on.
I couldn't come to the door - I had nothing on!
no arrangements for a stated period:
I've looked in her diary and she has nothing on on Tuesday afternoon.
There's nothing on next Friday - we could hold the meeting then.
© Cambridge University Press 2013
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary
nothing
/nʌθɪŋ/
(nothings)
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
1.
Nothing means not a single thing, or not a single part of something.
I’ve done nothing much since coffee time...
Mr Pearson said he knew nothing of his wife’s daytime habits...
He was dressed in jeans and nothing else...
There is nothing wrong with the car.
PRON
2.
You use nothing to indicate that something or someone is not important or significant.
Because he had always had money it meant nothing to him...
While the increase in homicides is alarming, it is nothing compared to what is to come in the rest of the decade...
She kept bursting into tears over nothing at work...
Do our years together mean nothing?
PRON
•
Nothing is also a noun.
It is the picture itself that is the problem; so small, so dull. It’s a nothing, really...
N-COUNT: usu sing
3.
If you say that something cost nothing or is worth nothing, you are indicating that it cost or is worth a surprisingly small amount of money.
The furniture was threadbare; he’d obviously picked it up for nothing...
Homes in this corner of Mantua that once went for $350,000 are now worth nothing.
PRON
4.
You use nothing before an adjective or ‘to’-infinitive to say that something or someone does not have the quality indicated.
Around the lake the countryside generally is nothing special...
There was nothing remarkable about him...
All kids her age do silly things; it’s nothing to worry about.
PRON: PRON adj, PRON to-inf
5.
You can use nothing before ‘so’ and an adjective or adverb, or before a comparative, to emphasize how strong or great a particular quality is.
Youngsters learn nothing so fast as how to beat the system...
I consider nothing more important in my life than songwriting...
There’s nothing better than a good cup of hot coffee.
PRON: PRON so adj/adv, PRON compar [emphasis]
6.
You can use all or nothing to say that either something must be done fully and completely or else it cannot be done at all.
Either he went through with this thing or he did not; it was all or nothing.
PHRASE: v-link PHR
7.
If you say that something is better than nothing, you mean that it is not what is required, but that it is better to have that thing than to have nothing at all.
After all, 15 minutes of exercise is better than nothing.
PHRASE: v-link PHR
8.
You use nothing but in front of a noun, an infinitive without ‘to’, or an ‘-ing’ form to mean ‘only’.
All that money brought nothing but sadness and misery and tragedy...
It did nothing but make us ridiculous...
They care for nothing but fighting.
PHRASE: PHR n/inf/-ing
9.
If you say that there is nothing for it but to take a particular action, you mean that it is the only possible course of action that you can take, even though it might be unpleasant. (BRIT)
Much depends on which individual ingredients you choose. There is nothing for it but to taste and to experiment for yourself...
PHRASE: V inflects, PHR but to-inf, PHR but n
10.
You use nothing if not in front of an adjective to indicate that someone or something clearly has a lot of the particular quality mentioned.
Professor Fish has been nothing if not professional...
PHRASE: v-link PHR adj [emphasis]
11.
People sometimes say ‘It’s nothing’ as a polite response after someone has thanked them for something they have done.
‘Thank you for the wonderful dinner.’—‘It’s nothing,’ Sarah said...
‘I’ll be on my way. I can’t thank you enough, Alan.’—‘It was nothing, but take care.’
= don’t mention it
CONVENTION [formulae]
12.
If you say about a story or report that there is nothing in it or nothing to it, you mean that it is untrue.
It’s all rubbish and superstition, and there’s nothing in it.
PHRASE: there v-link PHR
13.
If you say about an activity that there is nothing to it or nothing in it, you mean that it is extremely easy.
This device has a gripper that electrically twists off the jar top. Nothing to it...
If you’ve shied away from making pancakes in the past, don’t be put off–there’s really nothing in it!
PHRASE: there v-link PHR
14.
If you say about a contest or competition that there is nothing in it, you mean that two or more of the competitors are level and have an equal chance of winning.
PHRASE: there v-link PHR
15.
Nothing of the sort is used when strongly contradicting something that has just been said.
‘We’re going to talk this over in my office.’—‘We’re going to do nothing of the sort.’...
Mrs Adamson said that she was extremely sorry, in tones that made it clear that she was nothing of the sort.
PHRASE: PHR after v, v-link PHR [emphasis]
16.
nothing to write home about: see home
to say nothing of: see say
nothing short of: see short
to stop at nothing: see stop
to think nothing of: see think
Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary
1noth·ing /ˈnʌɵɪŋ/ pronoun
1 : not anything : not a thing
• There's nothing in my hands.
• She knows nothing of/about our plans.
• You have nothing to worry about.
• “What are you doing?” “Nothing (much).”
• There's nothing fun to do around here.
• I have nothing against them. [=I do not dislike or resent them]
• We'll accept nothing less than a full refund. [=we will only accept a full refund]
• It costs nothing for the first month. [=you do not have to pay anything for the first month]
• The phone call was nothing more than a sales pitch. [=it was just a sales pitch and not anything else]
• They live on practically nothing. [=no money]
• This has nothing to do with you. [=it does not involve you in any way]
• There's nothing else [=no more] to say.
• If nothing else, you should send him a card. [=you should at least send him a card]
• I've had next to nothing to eat. [=I have had very little to eat]
• He could make nothing of the coded message. [=he could not understand the coded message at all]
• We discussed plans for a new project, but nothing came of them. [=we did not do anything about what we discussed]
• He left nothing to chance. [=he planned for every possibility]
• The food leaves nothing to be desired. [=the food is excellent]
• Their children lack/want for nothing. [=their children have everything they need]
• Why should they help? There's nothing in it for them. [=they will not gain anything for themselves by helping]
• It looks like nothing so much as a big stick. [=it looks very much like a big stick]
• Those kids are nothing but trouble. [=they are always causing trouble]
• He is nothing if not persistent. [=he is extremely persistent]
• “I'm quitting school.” “You'll do nothing of the sort!” [=you will not do that; I will not allow you to do that]
• She'll stop at nothing [=she will do anything] to get what she wants.
• She finished up in nothing flat. [=in no time at all; very quickly]
- see also good-for-nothing
2 : someone or something that has no interest, value, or importance
• Money is nothing to them. [=they do not care at all about money]
• You think that's bad? It's nothing compared to what I went through.
• Don't get all upset over nothing.
• “Thanks for your help.” “It was nothing.” [=it was no trouble]
• Your opinion means nothing to me.
• “Are you hurt?” “Don't worry. It's nothing.”
• All our work came to nothing. = All our work resulted in nothing.
• He's nothing to me now. [=I don't care about him at all now]
double or nothing
- see 3double
have nothing on
- see have
here goes nothing
- see 1here
nothing daunted
- see daunt
nothing doing informal
- used as a forceful way of saying “no” to a question or suggestion
• He asked her to lend him the money, but she said nothing doing. [=she said that she would definitely not lend him the money]
• “Why don't you try it?” “Nothing doing.” [=no way; definitely not]
nothing else for it or Brit nothing for it old-fashioned
- used to say that something must be done because there is no other choice
• By the time we discovered the mistake, there was nothing else for it but to start over.
• We don't want to sell the house, but there is nothing else for it (but to sell).
nothing in/to
✦If you say that there is nothing in/to something, you mean that it is not true at all.
• There's nothing to the story/claim.
• There is nothing in the rumor.
nothing like
1
- used to say that something is very enjoyable or satisfying
• There's nothing like a cool swim on a hot day.
2 Brit informal : not nearly
• The report is nothing like thorough enough.
nothing to it
- used to say that something is very easy to do
• There's really nothing to it once you know how.
