aughtpron.adj.adv.

Brit.

/ɔːt/, U.S.

/ɔt/,

/ɑt/, Scottish English

/ɔxt/, Irish English

/ɒːxt/

Forms:

α. early Old English aweht, Old English awuht, Old English awyht, Old English–early Middle English aht, Old English–early Middle English awiht, Old English–Middle English auht, early Middle English ahct, early Middle English ahte, early Middle English awicht, early Middle English awihht ( Ormulum), early Middle English awihðt, early Middle English awyt, early Middle English haht, early Middle English hawet, Middle English aght, Middle English aȝt, Middle English aȝte, Middle English ahut, Middle English auȝt, Middle English auȝte, Middle English aut, Middle English awht, Middle English awt, Middle English– aught; Scottish pre-1700 aght, pre-1700 1900s– aucht, 1700s– aught; N.E.D. (1885) also records a form Middle English auȝht.

β. Old English–early Middle English oht, Old English–early Middle English owiht, early Middle English hoht, early Middle English hoþt, early Middle English ogt, early Middle English ohht ( Ormulum), early Middle English ohte, early Middle English ot, early Middle English ougt, early Middle English owhit, Middle English ȝout (probably transmission error), Middle English hoght, Middle English houȝt, Middle English hout, Middle English howth, Middle English ocht, Middle English ofte, Middle English oghte, Middle English ogth, Middle English oȝt, Middle English oȝth, Middle English ohut, Middle English ough, Middle English ouguht, Middle English ouȝt, Middle English ouȝte, Middle English ouȝth, Middle English ouht, Middle English out, Middle English oute, Middle English outh, Middle English ovght, Middle English ovt, Middle English owcht, Middle English owght, Middle English owghte, Middle English owgth, Middle English owhte, Middle English owt, Middle English owte, Middle English owth, Middle English owught, Middle English owyht (in a late copy), Middle English–1500s oght, Middle English–1600s oughte, Middle English– ought, 1500s oft; English regional 1700s–1800s ort (chiefly south-western), 1800s oht, 1800s owght; Scottish pre-1700 oght, pre-1700 oȝt, pre-1700 outht, pre-1700 owcht, pre-1700 owicht, pre-1700 oycht, pre-1700 1700s– ought, pre-1700 1800s– ocht, pre-1700 1800s– oucht, 1800s och; Irish English (northern) 1800s– ocht; see also owt pron.

γ. late Old English æwiht (Kentish), early Middle English æht, early Middle English eaht, early Middle English eaut, early Middle English eawet, early Middle English eawicht, early Middle English eawiht, early Middle English eawt, early Middle English eht, early Middle English ewicht, early Middle English ewt.

Origin: A word inherited from Germanic.

Etymology: Cognate with or formed similarly to Old Frisian āwet , owet , aut , āt , ēt , Old Dutch iowiht (Middle Dutch iewet , iet , (with analogical -s ) iets , Dutch iets ), Old Saxon iowiht , eowiht (Middle Low German icht , īt , jēt , gicht ), Old High German iowiht , eowiht , iawiht , iewiht , (with prefixed second element) iogiwiht (Middle High German iht , ieht , iewet , iet , īt , German (now regional) icht ) < the Germanic base of o adv. + the Germanic base of wight n., with the literal meaning ‘ever a whit’, i.e. ‘anything whatever’. Compare naught pron., naught adj., and naught adv.In Old English the forms āwiht and ōwiht (and their respective contracted variants āht and ōht ) (see α. and β. forms) are apparently used indiscriminately; for an explanation of the development of ō in the β. forms see discussion at o adv. The regular reflexes of Old English āht and ōht in Middle English are aght , aught and oght , ought , with shortening of the vowel before the consonant cluster, and subsequent development of a velar glide (some forms in o in southern and midland varieties could also represent the reflex of Old English āht with rounding and raising of the vowel to open ō and subsequent shortening). The diphthongized forms aught and ought generally remained phonologically distinct in Middle English; however, in some (chiefly western and southern) dialects unrounding of ŏ (especially before gh ) led to the falling together of ought with aught , and the reflex of this pronunciation (i.e. /ɒː/ or /ɔː/, as opposed to /oː/) was gradually introduced into standard English during the 17th cent. (see E. J. Dobson Eng. Pronunc. 1500–1700 (ed. 2, 1968) II. §240). The spellings aught and ought are used interchangeably in early modern English, although there is a distinct preference for the latter. More recently aught has been preferred as distinguishing the word from ought v. (compare also naught pron.). Now largely archaic, except in regional use (chiefly north midland and northern English, where the usual form is owt (see owt pron.) and Scots, where the usual form is ocht ). The γ. forms apparently reflect an Old English by-form with i-mutation; in Middle English these forms are chiefly found in the south-west midlands. In use as adjective developed from predicative use of the pronoun, i.e. originally meaning ‘anything good’, subsequently reanalysed as ‘any good’ (with the following semantic development: ‘of some worth’, ‘valuable’, ‘worthy’, ‘valiant’). In use as adverb originally representing the accusative of the pronoun used adverbially; compare e.g. somewhat adv.

Now archaic and regional (chiefly Scottish, Irish English (northern), and English regional (northern)).

A. pron.

1. Chiefly in interrogative, negative, and conditional contexts: anything; anything whatever, anything at all, even the least thing.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > [noun] > state of being non-specific > unspecified thing(s) > anything

whateOE

aughtOE

anywhata1400

what-not1540

anything1607

α.

OE Judgement Day II 205 Ne bið þær inne aht gemeted butan lig and cyle and laðlic ful.

OE tr. Medicina de Quadrupedibus (Vitell.) i. 234 Hafa mid þe, ðonne ne sceþþeð þe ne tungol ne hagol ne strang storm ne yfel man ne wolberendes awiht [?a1200 Harl. 6258B awyt].

OE Paris Psalter (1932) lviii. 8 And ðu hi, drihten, dest deope to bysmre; nafast þu for awiht ealle þeoda.

a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 103 Ȝif he awiht [OE Corpus Cambr. 178 hwæt] delan wule.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 5980 Þa oðere weoren al to-driuen..nes þer na steores-mon þat æuere aht [c1300 Otho ohte] cuðe þer-on.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 194 Er þan hi ham aȝt yeue.

c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 91 (MED) For ȝyf þy wyl reio[ye]þ more In enyes kennes þynges, Be hyȝt þy childe..Land, brouches..Oþer aȝt elles..Bote god..Þou ne a-nourest god aryȝt.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 4836 If we may find here aught to sell.

c1450 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Bodl. 277) (2002) Prov. x. 4 He þat enforsiþ to gete auȝt with lesyngis fediþ [the] wyndis.

1529 T. More Dyaloge Dyuers Maters iii. v. f. lxxvii/1 In good fayth quod I & for aught I se yet I durst be bold to swere w^t you.

1574 A. Golding tr. A. Marlorat Catholike Expos. Reuelation 114 Those..cannot bereeue them of aught that is theirs.

1610 R. Tofte tr. N. de Montreux Honours Acad. iii. 88 They should (neuer) taste of aught but of sorrow, care, and anguish!

1659 T. Burton Diary (1828) IV. 30 You cannot do aught without them.

1738 A. Ramsay Wks. (1961) III. 247 Ther's hardly aught coud please me better Than friendly love & your kind letter.

1826 A. Cunningham Paul Jones I. i. 21 Think ye that the cement of glamour-sleight will haud thegither, should aught that's no altogether holy and pure..come on board?

1859 Ld. Tennyson Vivien in Idylls of King 113 Unfaith in aught is want of faith in all.

1887 T. Hardy Woodlanders II. xiii. 256 Before she came here as the wife of old Charmond four or five years ago, not a soul seems to have heard aught of her.

1917 J. Buchan Poems 22 And we were never aucht but puir Frae first to last.

1952 M. Tripp Faith is Windsock i. 22 I were that surprised I didn't say aught.

2002 Belfast News Let. (Nexis) 23 Nov. 29 He cudnae see aucht aun went en tae see whut Marion haud seen oot tha wunda.

β. OE Seafarer 46 Ne biþ him to hearpan hyge..ne to wife wyn ne to worulde hyht, ne ymbe owiht elles, nefne ymb yða gewealc.OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) i. v. 45 Gif se man oht wundorlices oþþe clænlices wyrceþ utan þurh Godes gife.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 4669 Loc nu þe sellf hu ferr þu gast. Vt off þe rihhte weȝȝe Ȝiff þatt tu lufesst weorelld þing. To winnenn ohht wiþþ sinne.a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 65 Ȝif eni mon mis-deð us oht.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 663 (MED) Ȝif ho kuþe oȝt bute singe, Þat miȝte helpe to oþer þinge.c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Gal. vi. 3 If ony man gessith him silf for to be ouȝt.a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1871) III. 39 Ȝif out [1482 Caxton yf ought] schulde be wiþdrawe of þis lawe or put out [c1400 Tiber. ouȝt] more þerto.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 4144 Quar-for suld we of oght be ferd?1483 ( tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage of Soul (Caxton) (1859) i. ii. 3 If thou canst ought alledgen.1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. l. 251 Gyff man bad his thryll owcht do.?1550 H. Campbell Let. in A. I. Cameron Sc. Corr. Mary of Lorraine (1927) 321 Bot I se na provision mayd for ocht I can do.1575 W. Stevenson Gammer Gurtons Nedle iii. iii. sig. Ciii Dyd I (olde witche) steale oft was thine.1583 P. Stubbes Second Pt. Anat. Abuses sig. L7^v Whether he be ought, or naught.1660 Old Non-Conformist 13 It is one of the vestiments without which neither the water, nor bels, nor ought else can be hallowed.1709 A. Pope Chaucer's January & May in Poet. Misc.: 6th Pt. 222 Excuse me, Dear, if ought amiss was said.1729 A. Pope Dunciad (new ed.) i. 3 Grieve not at ought our sister realms acquire.1818 Edinb. Mag. & Literary Misc. Aug. 156/2 I am vext I canna gie ye a drink of ocht but water.1845 R. C. Trench Fitness Holy Script. i. 12 Who that knows ought of what is going forward.1852 Morning Post 5 July 2/2 If I've done ought wrong I'm willing to go with anybody, anywhere that you mind!1932 John o' Groat Jrnl. 25 Nov. Ye're a gentleman an' winna say ocht about it.1980 J. L. Carr Month in Country 2 All the same, if you want for ought, send me word.2002 Express (Nexis) 19 June 74 Ol' Seamo..once retorted to a request for an interview in broad Yorkshire: ‘I don't do ought for nought.’γ. lOE Canterbury Psalter xci. 14 Ut annuntient Quoniam iustus est dominus deus noster et non est iniquitas in eo : cwedæn þet were soðfest silua drihtæn & hine unrihtes æwiht [OE Paris Psalter awyht] ne heolde.c1175 (?OE) Instr. for Christians 183 in Anglia (1964) 82 16 Þær ðær aht ne bið ærfoðlices on þam earnungum, ne bið þær æfre þonne ma on eadleanum eht deorwurðes.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 Ȝif eniman seid eawiht to eou.c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Royal) (1981) l. 462 Buten ewt to leosen.a1250 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Titus) (1981) l. 805 Forto drehen eawt.

2. for aught —— knows and variants: conceivably; used to emphasize that a person has not sufficient information to have or offer an informed opinion, or (esp. in for aught I know) is merely speculating; = for all (that) —— knows at know v. Phrases 12. Similarly for aught I care: = for all I care at care v. 2b.

ΚΠ

c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 391 A Shipman was ther wonyng fer by weste For aught I woot he was of Dertemouthe.

1548 W. Patten Exped. Scotl. sig. E.viii For how euer he be our enemy, yet a man of honorable estat & woorthy (for ought I knowe) of the office he beares.

1577 R. Holinshed Chron. I. Pref. sig. ¶.iiij^v Sith for ought I know, the matter is not yet decided among the learned, but still they are in controuersie about it.

a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) v. iii. 282 It might be yours or hers for ought I know.

1620 H. Scudder Key of Heaven iv. 254 When the vniust man shall pray, Lord..do bereave them of houses and corne, turning them and theirs a grazing (for ought they care) into the wide world.

1673 W. Wycherley Gentleman Dancing-master ii. ii. 164 Nay, it may be, indeed; he might lend it to him for aught I know.

1767 Public Advertiser 19 June I do not pretend to be a Lawyer myself, but I shall give you the Opinion of a Person who may be one for ought I know.

1773 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer iii. 53 For aught I know to the contrary.

1852 Fraser's Mag. Jan. 5/2 They might burn the Jews' quarter to-morrow for aught I care.

1893 Black & White 25 Mar. 365/1 For aught he knows, there may not be a fish within ten yards.

1932 R. Macaulay Shadow Flies i. 55 Robin's welcome to use all the Latin poets of antiquity to adorn his verse, for aught I care.

1933 Times 19 Nov. 4/4 It may have continued for aught you know?

2002 Independent (Nexis) 20 Aug. 3 You had better be very careful what you are going to say next. For aught I know, Mr Paxman may be in a litigious mood.

B. adj.

†1. Chiefly in predicative use. That is of some worth or account; good, valuable; valiant, doughty. Cf. naught adj. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > worth > [adjective]

dearc888

dearworthc888

worthlyeOE

oughtsOE

worthfulOE

aughtOE

richa1225

gildenc1225

of pricea1325

worthya1325

of (‥) valourc1330

prow1340

dearworthyc1374

of value1395

pricefula1400

presc1400

singularc1400

goldena1425

well-foundc1475

valiant1481

prized1487

prowousa1500

valuable1567

prizable1569

valorous1592

suit-worth1594

bully1600

estimable1600

treasurable1607

treasurous?1611

treasured1675

pearly1770

at a premium1828

keep-worthy1830

good value1842

α.

OE Homily: Sermo ad Populum Dominicis Diebus (Lamb. 489) in A. S. Napier Wulfstan (1883) 295 Þæt is, þa þe ahte syndon, hi sculon fleonde on gefeohte beon ofslagene.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1086 An man þe him sylf aht wære mihte faran ofer his rice mid his bosum full goldes ungederad.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4060 Ahte [c1300 Otho strong] cniht wes Auelin.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2170 Þu eært muchele ahtere [c1300 Otho hardiere].

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 6249 Al þat lond..al heo hit biwunnen mid heore ahte wæpnen.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 11999 He adde mid him auȝte men inowe.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 3091 Wo as yhurd such folye, wer þer ne be in non ende Stones þat aȝte [a1400 Trin. Cambr. auȝtes, ?a1425 Digby ouȝt, c1425 Harl. aȝtes, a1450 London Univ. aughtys] be, bote hii hider sende.

c1450 (c1350) Alexander & Dindimus (Bodl.) (1929) l. 936 Whan he is eldure of age þat auht is his strenke.

β. c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Bodl.) (1981) l. 625 Al þet eauer oht is [L. quicquid boni], al is þer i[h]wer; ant hwetse noht nis, þet nis þer nohwer.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 9195 And æuerælc ocht [c1300 Otho oht] mon sterkliche heom legge on.c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 2215 If any wyȝe oȝt wyl, wynne hider fast.c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy (2002) f. 161 Þan Agamynon all the gret gedirt onon Kynges into counsell & oþer kyd dukes Erles & all men oght of astate.

2. Chiefly (and now only) Scottish. Any. Now rare.

ΚΠ

1806 R. Tannahill in Gleaner 40 Nor past he ocht thing slightly by.

1885 J. Lumsden Rural Rhymes 57 Scarce a donkey's load is, O' oucht kind grain.

1896 C. G. de Betham in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1898) I. 94/1 [Suffolk] I never buy ought such things as you have.

1950 Nine May 122 Speak nocht, or ocht thing spier at me.

†C. adv.

1. To any extent, in any respect, at all; possibly, by any chance. Obsolete (chiefly poetic in later use).

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > [adverb] > in any way or respect

anythingeOE

aughteOE

anywisea1225

anywaysc1225

anywaya1400

aughtways1878

the world > relative properties > quantity > degree or relative amount of a quality, action, etc. > [adverb] > in any degree or at all

anythingeOE

aughteOE

oughtsOE

anywisea1225

anyc1300

anywaya1400

at all1476

ever1548

anywhat1576

anyways1673

earthly1833

aughtways1878

α.

OE tr. Vindicta Salvatoris (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) in J. E. Cross Two Old Eng. Apocrypha (1996) 275 He þa het ealle þa ðe Cryst awyht cuðon, þæt hig hym sceoldon to cuman.

c1300 (?c1225) King Horn (Laud) (1901) l. 1194 Þou schalt telle Ȝyf þou horn awt [c1300 Cambr. eure] seye Honder wode leye.

c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 21 (MED) Chaungeþ he [sc. Christ] auȝt, ase oþere mote [read mete], In-to oure flesch and blode By kende?

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 3828 ‘Knau ȝe aut,’ he said, ‘laban?’

c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Man of Law's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 936 Ther on mused he If þ^t the childes moder were aught she That is his wyf.

a1450 (?a1300) Richard Coer de Lyon (Caius) (1810) l. 2460 The drowmound was so hevy fraught, That unethe myght it saylen aught.

a1657 W. Mure Wks. (1898) I. 9 No force in loue Can aght disquyet or perturbe my mynde.

1659 Col. Fielder in T. Burton Diary (1828) IV. 129 It is against the order of your house to interpose aught.

1749 tr. E. Holdsworth Muscipula in Diss. Virgil's Georgics 48 We'll try If this mechanick hand, if craft, deceit, Can aught advantage.

1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. ii. 373 Neither wise Are they, nor just, nor aught suspect the doom.

1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise I. i. 47 But none the glittering evil valued aught.

a1918 W. Owen Coll. Poems (1963) 102 They move not from her tapestries, their pall, Nor pace her terraces, their hecatombs, Lest aught she be disturbed, or grieved at all.

β. eOE Old Eng. Martyrol. (BL Add. 40165) 4 May (2013) 316 Ne bið alefed..ðæt monn him blod læte oþðe clæsnungdrencas drince oðþe oht feor gewite..from ðære stowe.OE Daniel 342 Hyre [read hyra] lice ne wæs owiht geegled.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 432 Fand mann nan þing upp onn hemm Þatt mihhte ohht anngrenn oþre.c1300 Life & Martyrdom Thomas Becket (Harl. 2277) (1845) l. 108 If he me wolde spousi oȝt.c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Canon's Yeoman's Tale (Ellesmere) (1875) l. 597 Can he oght telle a myrie tale or tweye?a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. viii. 81 Or thay flytt oght far vs fro.1577 W. Harrison Descr. Eng. i. ii. xxiii. 353 When rain doth ought annoie them.

2. To some extent, somewhat; rather, quite. Obsolete (Scottish in later use).Sometimes difficult to distinguish from sense C. 1.

ΚΠ

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 12335 Adam..wass þær forrlisst. To winnenn awihht mare. Innsihht. & witt. & shæd. & skill Þann himm hiss drihhtin uþe.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 1384 (MED) So muche he louede þe emperour þat, þei he miȝte oȝt His truage atholde aȝen, vor loue he nolde noȝt.

1420 in R. W. Chambers & M. Daunt Bk. London Eng. (1931) 298 (MED) As touching þe scripture of þe seeles, vs semeth þat þis worde Regent may be owte wel ynogh.

c1480 (a1400) St. Andrew l. 605 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 80 Þu dwellis in wikitnes, And wenis nocht-þe-les, Þat I suld dowt þi manauce ocht.

1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) vii. l. 562 We wald lik ill to byd oucht lang away.

1790 J. Fisher Poems Var. Subj. 60 An' when fouk cam' That fuddle wad I thought ought lang.

1928 J. G. Horne Lan'wart Loon 12 Tam was mair nor ocht camsteerie.

Derivatives

† aughtways adv. Obsolete rare in any way or respect.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > [adverb] > in any way or respect

anythingeOE

aughteOE

anywisea1225

anywaysc1225

anywaya1400

aughtways1878

the world > relative properties > quantity > degree or relative amount of a quality, action, etc. > [adverb] > in any degree or at all

anythingeOE

aughteOE

oughtsOE

anywisea1225

anyc1300

anywaya1400

at all1476

ever1548

anywhat1576

anyways1673

earthly1833

aughtways1878

1878 J. Thomson Plenipotent Key 26 Let none be aughtways backward..To echo fervently this hymn of mine.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	aught
释义	† aughtn.¹ Forms: Old English æht, Old English eaht, Old English eht, Middle English ahte, Middle English aught, Middle English auȝt. Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Cognate with Old Frisian achte , acht , hachte law court, proposed judgement, Middle Dutch acht , achte opinion, discussion, state, attention (Dutch acht attention), Middle Low German acht , achte attention, reputation, Old High German ahta idea, opinion, reputation (Middle High German aht , ahte opinion, attitude, attention, reckoning, German Acht attention) < a suffixed form (compare -t suffix³) of the Germanic base of Gothic aha mind, understanding, and (with different suffixation) ahma spirit; further etymology unknown. Obsolete. Estimation, value; opinion; reputation. Also: deliberation, council. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > speech > conversation > [noun] > conferring or consulting aughteOE redeOE somrunec1275 speakingc1275 counselc1290 deliberationc1405 advisement1414 commoninga1425 communingc1425 imparlement1450 imparling1450 parleyc1490 parleying1508 counselment1523 parling1527 counsellinga1533 practice1540 interview1541 consultation1548 parliance1553 conference1555 enterparling1557 consult1560 imparlee1565 parlance1577 imparlance1579 parliamenting1582 deliberative1590 converse1614 parliamentation1622 powwowing1642 consulting1823 powwowism1873 eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xviii. 133 Ðonne bið ðæt æðeleste hiw onhworfen, ðonne se æht ðara godra weorca, ðe he ær beeode, bið gewanod. OE Cynewulf Elene 473 Þonne uðweotan æht bisæton, on sefan sohton hu hie sunu meotudes ahengon. lOE Laws of Edward the Elder (Rochester) i. i. §4. 140 Begete þara syxa ænne æt anum hryðere, oððe æt þam orfe þe ðæs weorð sy; & syððan wexe be ðæs ceapes æhte, gif þær ma to scyle. a1350 in G. L. Brook Harley Lyrics (1968) 45 (MED) Ah, feyre þinges..when me ou woweþ, beþ war bifore whuch is worldes ahte. a1400 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Egerton) (1966) l. 617 Now is þe well of muche auȝt; Ȝif a woman com þat is forlauȝt..Þe water wylle ȝelle as it were wood. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online September 2021). aughtn.² Brit. /ɔːt/, U.S. /ɔt/, /ɑt/ Origin: Probably a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymon: naught n. Etymology: Probably a variant of naught n. with metanalysis (see N n.). Compare slightly earlier ought n.² 1. A nought, zero. Cf. ought n.² Now chiefly regional. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > number > mathematical number or quantity > [noun] > zero > nought or character zero cipher1399 nullity1587 nullo1598 zero1604 null1648 naught1649 noughta1660 ought1821 aught1822 oh1908 1822 M. Edgeworth Frank: Sequel III. 143 It was said..that all Cambridge scholars call the cipher aught and all Oxford scholars call it nought. 1845 J. Hunter New Illustr. Life, Stud., & Writings Shakespeare II. iv. 251 An aught is the common name of the cypher in Warwickshire and elsewhere. 1892 Trans. Amer. Philol. Assoc. 23 258 A naught, misdivided, has produced an aught or ought, a form used even by many persons of education. 1919 Amer. Hatter Feb. 80/2 It will be necessary to precede the department number with an aught, as 01546, 02645. 1959 T. Williams Sweet Bird of Youth ii. i. 60 See them five figures, that one and that five and them three aughts on there? 2006 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 10 Dec. ix. 8/3 ‘Crazy zeros’ is how one longtime collector termed current art pricing. Pull a figure out of a hat and add a random aught or two. 2. Chiefly U.S. In plural with the. The decade from 2000 to 2009. Cf. noughties n. ΚΠ 1986 Verbatim Spring 13/1 When the twenty-first century dawns, what are we going to call its first decade? The Zeros? Too dismal. The Noughts or Naughts? Too negative. The Aughts or Oughts? Too ambiguous. 2004 M. M. Lewis Scars of Soul i. iv. 65 The misogynistic bitch-and-ho parlance of the nineties tempered off somewhat during the aughts. 2009 Vanity Fair Dec. 175/2 Everybody would probably agree that the aughts have been an ugly decade. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online June 2022). aughtpron.adj.adv. Brit. /ɔːt/, U.S. /ɔt/, /ɑt/, Scottish English /ɔxt/, Irish English /ɒːxt/ Forms: α. early Old English aweht, Old English awuht, Old English awyht, Old English–early Middle English aht, Old English–early Middle English awiht, Old English–Middle English auht, early Middle English ahct, early Middle English ahte, early Middle English awicht, early Middle English awihht ( Ormulum), early Middle English awihðt, early Middle English awyt, early Middle English haht, early Middle English hawet, Middle English aght, Middle English aȝt, Middle English aȝte, Middle English ahut, Middle English auȝt, Middle English auȝte, Middle English aut, Middle English awht, Middle English awt, Middle English– aught; Scottish pre-1700 aght, pre-1700 1900s– aucht, 1700s– aught; N.E.D. (1885) also records a form Middle English auȝht. β. Old English–early Middle English oht, Old English–early Middle English owiht, early Middle English hoht, early Middle English hoþt, early Middle English ogt, early Middle English ohht ( Ormulum), early Middle English ohte, early Middle English ot, early Middle English ougt, early Middle English owhit, Middle English ȝout (probably transmission error), Middle English hoght, Middle English houȝt, Middle English hout, Middle English howth, Middle English ocht, Middle English ofte, Middle English oghte, Middle English ogth, Middle English oȝt, Middle English oȝth, Middle English ohut, Middle English ough, Middle English ouguht, Middle English ouȝt, Middle English ouȝte, Middle English ouȝth, Middle English ouht, Middle English out, Middle English oute, Middle English outh, Middle English ovght, Middle English ovt, Middle English owcht, Middle English owght, Middle English owghte, Middle English owgth, Middle English owhte, Middle English owt, Middle English owte, Middle English owth, Middle English owught, Middle English owyht (in a late copy), Middle English–1500s oght, Middle English–1600s oughte, Middle English– ought, 1500s oft; English regional 1700s–1800s ort (chiefly south-western), 1800s oht, 1800s owght; Scottish pre-1700 oght, pre-1700 oȝt, pre-1700 outht, pre-1700 owcht, pre-1700 owicht, pre-1700 oycht, pre-1700 1700s– ought, pre-1700 1800s– ocht, pre-1700 1800s– oucht, 1800s och; Irish English (northern) 1800s– ocht; see also owt pron. γ. late Old English æwiht (Kentish), early Middle English æht, early Middle English eaht, early Middle English eaut, early Middle English eawet, early Middle English eawicht, early Middle English eawiht, early Middle English eawt, early Middle English eht, early Middle English ewicht, early Middle English ewt. Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Cognate with or formed similarly to Old Frisian āwet , owet , aut , āt , ēt , Old Dutch iowiht (Middle Dutch iewet , iet , (with analogical -s ) iets , Dutch iets ), Old Saxon iowiht , eowiht (Middle Low German icht , īt , jēt , gicht ), Old High German iowiht , eowiht , iawiht , iewiht , (with prefixed second element) iogiwiht (Middle High German iht , ieht , iewet , iet , īt , German (now regional) icht ) < the Germanic base of o adv. + the Germanic base of wight n., with the literal meaning ‘ever a whit’, i.e. ‘anything whatever’. Compare naught pron., naught adj., and naught adv.In Old English the forms āwiht and ōwiht (and their respective contracted variants āht and ōht ) (see α. and β. forms) are apparently used indiscriminately; for an explanation of the development of ō in the β. forms see discussion at o adv. The regular reflexes of Old English āht and ōht in Middle English are aght , aught and oght , ought , with shortening of the vowel before the consonant cluster, and subsequent development of a velar glide (some forms in o in southern and midland varieties could also represent the reflex of Old English āht with rounding and raising of the vowel to open ō and subsequent shortening). The diphthongized forms aught and ought generally remained phonologically distinct in Middle English; however, in some (chiefly western and southern) dialects unrounding of ŏ (especially before gh ) led to the falling together of ought with aught , and the reflex of this pronunciation (i.e. /ɒː/ or /ɔː/, as opposed to /oː/) was gradually introduced into standard English during the 17th cent. (see E. J. Dobson Eng. Pronunc. 1500–1700 (ed. 2, 1968) II. §240). The spellings aught and ought are used interchangeably in early modern English, although there is a distinct preference for the latter. More recently aught has been preferred as distinguishing the word from ought v. (compare also naught pron.). Now largely archaic, except in regional use (chiefly north midland and northern English, where the usual form is owt (see owt pron.) and Scots, where the usual form is ocht ). The γ. forms apparently reflect an Old English by-form with i-mutation; in Middle English these forms are chiefly found in the south-west midlands. In use as adjective developed from predicative use of the pronoun, i.e. originally meaning ‘anything good’, subsequently reanalysed as ‘any good’ (with the following semantic development: ‘of some worth’, ‘valuable’, ‘worthy’, ‘valiant’). In use as adverb originally representing the accusative of the pronoun used adverbially; compare e.g. somewhat adv. Now archaic and regional (chiefly Scottish, Irish English (northern), and English regional (northern)). A. pron. 1. Chiefly in interrogative, negative, and conditional contexts: anything; anything whatever, anything at all, even the least thing. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > [noun] > state of being non-specific > unspecified thing(s) > anything whateOE aughtOE anywhata1400 what-not1540 anything1607 α. OE Judgement Day II 205 Ne bið þær inne aht gemeted butan lig and cyle and laðlic ful. OE tr. Medicina de Quadrupedibus (Vitell.) i. 234 Hafa mid þe, ðonne ne sceþþeð þe ne tungol ne hagol ne strang storm ne yfel man ne wolberendes awiht [?a1200 Harl. 6258B awyt]. OE Paris Psalter (1932) lviii. 8 And ðu hi, drihten, dest deope to bysmre; nafast þu for awiht ealle þeoda. a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 103 Ȝif he awiht [OE Corpus Cambr. 178 hwæt] delan wule. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 5980 Þa oðere weoren al to-driuen..nes þer na steores-mon þat æuere aht [c1300 Otho ohte] cuðe þer-on. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 194 Er þan hi ham aȝt yeue. c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 91 (MED) For ȝyf þy wyl reio[ye]þ more In enyes kennes þynges, Be hyȝt þy childe..Land, brouches..Oþer aȝt elles..Bote god..Þou ne a-nourest god aryȝt. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 4836 If we may find here aught to sell. c1450 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Bodl. 277) (2002) Prov. x. 4 He þat enforsiþ to gete auȝt with lesyngis fediþ [the] wyndis. 1529 T. More Dyaloge Dyuers Maters iii. v. f. lxxvii/1 In good fayth quod I & for aught I se yet I durst be bold to swere w^t you. 1574 A. Golding tr. A. Marlorat Catholike Expos. Reuelation 114 Those..cannot bereeue them of aught that is theirs. 1610 R. Tofte tr. N. de Montreux Honours Acad. iii. 88 They should (neuer) taste of aught but of sorrow, care, and anguish! 1659 T. Burton Diary (1828) IV. 30 You cannot do aught without them. 1738 A. Ramsay Wks. (1961) III. 247 Ther's hardly aught coud please me better Than friendly love & your kind letter. 1826 A. Cunningham Paul Jones I. i. 21 Think ye that the cement of glamour-sleight will haud thegither, should aught that's no altogether holy and pure..come on board? 1859 Ld. Tennyson Vivien in Idylls of King 113 Unfaith in aught is want of faith in all. 1887 T. Hardy Woodlanders II. xiii. 256 Before she came here as the wife of old Charmond four or five years ago, not a soul seems to have heard aught of her. 1917 J. Buchan Poems 22 And we were never aucht but puir Frae first to last. 1952 M. Tripp Faith is Windsock i. 22 I were that surprised I didn't say aught. 2002 Belfast News Let. (Nexis) 23 Nov. 29 He cudnae see aucht aun went en tae see whut Marion haud seen oot tha wunda. β. OE Seafarer 46 Ne biþ him to hearpan hyge..ne to wife wyn ne to worulde hyht, ne ymbe owiht elles, nefne ymb yða gewealc.OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) i. v. 45 Gif se man oht wundorlices oþþe clænlices wyrceþ utan þurh Godes gife.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 4669 Loc nu þe sellf hu ferr þu gast. Vt off þe rihhte weȝȝe Ȝiff þatt tu lufesst weorelld þing. To winnenn ohht wiþþ sinne.a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 65 Ȝif eni mon mis-deð us oht.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 663 (MED) Ȝif ho kuþe oȝt bute singe, Þat miȝte helpe to oþer þinge.c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Gal. vi. 3 If ony man gessith him silf for to be ouȝt.a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1871) III. 39 Ȝif out [1482 Caxton yf ought] schulde be wiþdrawe of þis lawe or put out [c1400 Tiber. ouȝt] more þerto.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 4144 Quar-for suld we of oght be ferd?1483 ( tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage of Soul (Caxton) (1859) i. ii. 3 If thou canst ought alledgen.1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. l. 251 Gyff man bad his thryll owcht do.?1550 H. Campbell Let. in A. I. Cameron Sc. Corr. Mary of Lorraine (1927) 321 Bot I se na provision mayd for ocht I can do.1575 W. Stevenson Gammer Gurtons Nedle iii. iii. sig. Ciii Dyd I (olde witche) steale oft was thine.1583 P. Stubbes Second Pt. Anat. Abuses sig. L7^v Whether he be ought, or naught.1660 Old Non-Conformist 13 It is one of the vestiments without which neither the water, nor bels, nor ought else can be hallowed.1709 A. Pope Chaucer's January & May in Poet. Misc.: 6th Pt. 222 Excuse me, Dear, if ought amiss was said.1729 A. Pope Dunciad (new ed.) i. 3 Grieve not at ought our sister realms acquire.1818 Edinb. Mag. & Literary Misc. Aug. 156/2 I am vext I canna gie ye a drink of ocht but water.1845 R. C. Trench Fitness Holy Script. i. 12 Who that knows ought of what is going forward.1852 Morning Post 5 July 2/2 If I've done ought wrong I'm willing to go with anybody, anywhere that you mind!1932 John o' Groat Jrnl. 25 Nov. Ye're a gentleman an' winna say ocht about it.1980 J. L. Carr Month in Country 2 All the same, if you want for ought, send me word.2002 Express (Nexis) 19 June 74 Ol' Seamo..once retorted to a request for an interview in broad Yorkshire: ‘I don't do ought for nought.’γ. lOE Canterbury Psalter xci. 14 Ut annuntient Quoniam iustus est dominus deus noster et non est iniquitas in eo : cwedæn þet were soðfest silua drihtæn & hine unrihtes æwiht [OE Paris Psalter awyht] ne heolde.c1175 (?OE) Instr. for Christians 183 in Anglia (1964) 82 16 Þær ðær aht ne bið ærfoðlices on þam earnungum, ne bið þær æfre þonne ma on eadleanum eht deorwurðes.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 Ȝif eniman seid eawiht to eou.c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Royal) (1981) l. 462 Buten ewt to leosen.a1250 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Titus) (1981) l. 805 Forto drehen eawt. 2. for aught —— knows and variants: conceivably; used to emphasize that a person has not sufficient information to have or offer an informed opinion, or (esp. in for aught I know) is merely speculating; = for all (that) —— knows at know v. Phrases 12. Similarly for aught I care: = for all I care at care v. 2b. ΚΠ c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 391 A Shipman was ther wonyng fer by weste For aught I woot he was of Dertemouthe. 1548 W. Patten Exped. Scotl. sig. E.viii For how euer he be our enemy, yet a man of honorable estat & woorthy (for ought I knowe) of the office he beares. 1577 R. Holinshed Chron. I. Pref. sig. ¶.iiij^v Sith for ought I know, the matter is not yet decided among the learned, but still they are in controuersie about it. a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) v. iii. 282 It might be yours or hers for ought I know. 1620 H. Scudder Key of Heaven iv. 254 When the vniust man shall pray, Lord..do bereave them of houses and corne, turning them and theirs a grazing (for ought they care) into the wide world. 1673 W. Wycherley Gentleman Dancing-master ii. ii. 164 Nay, it may be, indeed; he might lend it to him for aught I know. 1767 Public Advertiser 19 June I do not pretend to be a Lawyer myself, but I shall give you the Opinion of a Person who may be one for ought I know. 1773 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer iii. 53 For aught I know to the contrary. 1852 Fraser's Mag. Jan. 5/2 They might burn the Jews' quarter to-morrow for aught I care. 1893 Black & White 25 Mar. 365/1 For aught he knows, there may not be a fish within ten yards. 1932 R. Macaulay Shadow Flies i. 55 Robin's welcome to use all the Latin poets of antiquity to adorn his verse, for aught I care. 1933 Times 19 Nov. 4/4 It may have continued for aught you know? 2002 Independent (Nexis) 20 Aug. 3 You had better be very careful what you are going to say next. For aught I know, Mr Paxman may be in a litigious mood. B. adj. †1. Chiefly in predicative use. That is of some worth or account; good, valuable; valiant, doughty. Cf. naught adj. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > worth > [adjective] dearc888 dearworthc888 worthlyeOE oughtsOE worthfulOE aughtOE richa1225 gildenc1225 of pricea1325 worthya1325 of (‥) valourc1330 prow1340 dearworthyc1374 of value1395 pricefula1400 presc1400 singularc1400 goldena1425 well-foundc1475 valiant1481 prized1487 prowousa1500 valuable1567 prizable1569 valorous1592 suit-worth1594 bully1600 estimable1600 treasurable1607 treasurous?1611 treasured1675 pearly1770 at a premium1828 keep-worthy1830 good value1842 α. OE Homily: Sermo ad Populum Dominicis Diebus (Lamb. 489) in A. S. Napier Wulfstan (1883) 295 Þæt is, þa þe ahte syndon, hi sculon fleonde on gefeohte beon ofslagene. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1086 An man þe him sylf aht wære mihte faran ofer his rice mid his bosum full goldes ungederad. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4060 Ahte [c1300 Otho strong] cniht wes Auelin. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2170 Þu eært muchele ahtere [c1300 Otho hardiere]. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 6249 Al þat lond..al heo hit biwunnen mid heore ahte wæpnen. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 11999 He adde mid him auȝte men inowe. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 3091 Wo as yhurd such folye, wer þer ne be in non ende Stones þat aȝte [a1400 Trin. Cambr. auȝtes, ?a1425 Digby ouȝt, c1425 Harl. aȝtes, a1450 London Univ. aughtys] be, bote hii hider sende. c1450 (c1350) Alexander & Dindimus (Bodl.) (1929) l. 936 Whan he is eldure of age þat auht is his strenke. β. c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Bodl.) (1981) l. 625 Al þet eauer oht is [L. quicquid boni], al is þer i[h]wer; ant hwetse noht nis, þet nis þer nohwer.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 9195 And æuerælc ocht [c1300 Otho oht] mon sterkliche heom legge on.c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 2215 If any wyȝe oȝt wyl, wynne hider fast.c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy (2002) f. 161 Þan Agamynon all the gret gedirt onon Kynges into counsell & oþer kyd dukes Erles & all men oght of astate. 2. Chiefly (and now only) Scottish. Any. Now rare. ΚΠ 1806 R. Tannahill in Gleaner 40 Nor past he ocht thing slightly by. 1885 J. Lumsden Rural Rhymes 57 Scarce a donkey's load is, O' oucht kind grain. 1896 C. G. de Betham in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1898) I. 94/1 [Suffolk] I never buy ought such things as you have. 1950 Nine May 122 Speak nocht, or ocht thing spier at me. †C. adv. 1. To any extent, in any respect, at all; possibly, by any chance. Obsolete (chiefly poetic in later use). ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > [adverb] > in any way or respect anythingeOE aughteOE anywisea1225 anywaysc1225 anywaya1400 aughtways1878 the world > relative properties > quantity > degree or relative amount of a quality, action, etc. > [adverb] > in any degree or at all anythingeOE aughteOE oughtsOE anywisea1225 anyc1300 anywaya1400 at all1476 ever1548 anywhat1576 anyways1673 earthly1833 aughtways1878 α. OE tr. Vindicta Salvatoris (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) in J. E. Cross Two Old Eng. Apocrypha (1996) 275 He þa het ealle þa ðe Cryst awyht cuðon, þæt hig hym sceoldon to cuman. c1300 (?c1225) King Horn (Laud) (1901) l. 1194 Þou schalt telle Ȝyf þou horn awt [c1300 Cambr. eure] seye Honder wode leye. c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 21 (MED) Chaungeþ he [sc. Christ] auȝt, ase oþere mote [read mete], In-to oure flesch and blode By kende? a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 3828 ‘Knau ȝe aut,’ he said, ‘laban?’ c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Man of Law's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 936 Ther on mused he If þ^t the childes moder were aught she That is his wyf. a1450 (?a1300) Richard Coer de Lyon (Caius) (1810) l. 2460 The drowmound was so hevy fraught, That unethe myght it saylen aught. a1657 W. Mure Wks. (1898) I. 9 No force in loue Can aght disquyet or perturbe my mynde. 1659 Col. Fielder in T. Burton Diary (1828) IV. 129 It is against the order of your house to interpose aught. 1749 tr. E. Holdsworth Muscipula in Diss. Virgil's Georgics 48 We'll try If this mechanick hand, if craft, deceit, Can aught advantage. 1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. ii. 373 Neither wise Are they, nor just, nor aught suspect the doom. 1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise I. i. 47 But none the glittering evil valued aught. a1918 W. Owen Coll. Poems (1963) 102 They move not from her tapestries, their pall, Nor pace her terraces, their hecatombs, Lest aught she be disturbed, or grieved at all. β. eOE Old Eng. Martyrol. (BL Add. 40165) 4 May (2013) 316 Ne bið alefed..ðæt monn him blod læte oþðe clæsnungdrencas drince oðþe oht feor gewite..from ðære stowe.OE Daniel 342 Hyre [read hyra] lice ne wæs owiht geegled.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 432 Fand mann nan þing upp onn hemm Þatt mihhte ohht anngrenn oþre.c1300 Life & Martyrdom Thomas Becket (Harl. 2277) (1845) l. 108 If he me wolde spousi oȝt.c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Canon's Yeoman's Tale (Ellesmere) (1875) l. 597 Can he oght telle a myrie tale or tweye?a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. viii. 81 Or thay flytt oght far vs fro.1577 W. Harrison Descr. Eng. i. ii. xxiii. 353 When rain doth ought annoie them. 2. To some extent, somewhat; rather, quite. Obsolete (Scottish in later use).Sometimes difficult to distinguish from sense C. 1. ΚΠ c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 12335 Adam..wass þær forrlisst. To winnenn awihht mare. Innsihht. & witt. & shæd. & skill Þann himm hiss drihhtin uþe. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 1384 (MED) So muche he louede þe emperour þat, þei he miȝte oȝt His truage atholde aȝen, vor loue he nolde noȝt. 1420 in R. W. Chambers & M. Daunt Bk. London Eng. (1931) 298 (MED) As touching þe scripture of þe seeles, vs semeth þat þis worde Regent may be owte wel ynogh. c1480 (a1400) St. Andrew l. 605 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 80 Þu dwellis in wikitnes, And wenis nocht-þe-les, Þat I suld dowt þi manauce ocht. 1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) vii. l. 562 We wald lik ill to byd oucht lang away. 1790 J. Fisher Poems Var. Subj. 60 An' when fouk cam' That fuddle wad I thought ought lang. 1928 J. G. Horne Lan'wart Loon 12 Tam was mair nor ocht camsteerie. Derivatives † aughtways adv. Obsolete rare in any way or respect. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > [adverb] > in any way or respect anythingeOE aughteOE anywisea1225 anywaysc1225 anywaya1400 aughtways1878 the world > relative properties > quantity > degree or relative amount of a quality, action, etc. > [adverb] > in any degree or at all anythingeOE aughteOE oughtsOE anywisea1225 anyc1300 anywaya1400 at all1476 ever1548 anywhat1576 anyways1673 earthly1833 aughtways1878 1878 J. Thomson Plenipotent Key 26 Let none be aughtways backward..To echo fervently this hymn of mine. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < n.¹eOEn.²1822pron.adj.adv.eOE
随便看	uninsurabilities uninsurability uninsurable uninsurableness uninsured unintegrated unintellective unintellectual unintellectualism unintellectuality unintellectually unintelligence unintelligences unintelligent unintelligently unintelligibilities unintelligibility unintelligible unintelligibleness unintelligiblenesses unintelligibly unintended unintendedly unintensive unintentional

† aughtn.1

aughtn.2

aughtpron.adj.adv.

Derivatives

† aughtn.¹

aughtn.²