oughtn.1
/ɔːt/, U.S. /ɔt/, /ɑt/ That which should be done, the obligatory; a statement using ‘ought’, expressing a moral imperative. Also concrete: something necessary.
ΘΚΠ
society > morality > duty or obligation > [noun]
debtc1330
officec1330
obliginga1382
dutyc1385
bondc1449
due?a1475
bounden duty1530
dueness1576
behoof1591
obligement1611
obligationa1616
ought1678
right1752
1678 R. Cudworth True Intellect. Syst. Universe i. v. 874 The Will of God, is Goodness, Justice, and Wisdom; or Decorousness, Fitness, and Ought it self, Willing.
1747 S. Richardson Clarissa II. xviii. 110 If, Mrs. Betty, I had not been used to your oughts, and to have my duty laid down to me, by your oraculous wisdom, I should be apt to stare at the liberty of your speech.
1865 J. B. Mozley 8 Lect. Miracles iii. 257 Without the sense of ‘ought’..there is nothing to bind the individual to those actions.
1874 ‘G. Eliot’ College Breakfast Party in Macmillan's Mag. July 179 The will supreme, the individual claim, The social Ought, the lyrist's liberty.
1878 W. E. Gladstone Homer vi. §30. 87 The two great ideas of the divine will, and of the Ought, or duty, are the principal factors in the government of our human world.
1908 A. Bennett Human Machine 43 You have a special apparatus within you for dealing with a universe where oughts are flagrantly disregarded.
1941 Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.) 3 July 10/7 (advt.) Oughts for a great vacation. Bathing, boardwalk and ‘loaf-life’ specials. Mens & Boys Swim Trunks.
1967 D. Potter Nigel Barton Plays 101 And all the oughts is about money, sonny..and nobody says they ought to give me that.
1988 Oxf. Jrnl. Legal Stud. 8 332 What is involved is not a moral ought but the ought of a hypothetical imperative.
1992 P. Robinson Dredger in Entertaining Fates vi. 81 For it could only bring up oughts, shoulds and ought-to-have-dones.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2004; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
oughtn.2
/ɔːt/, U.S. /ɔt/, /ɑt/ A nought, zero, cipher. Frequently in oughts and crosses n. = noughts and crosses n. Also figurative.The text of Ritson's Caledonian Muse (see quot. 1821) was first printed in 1785 but the whole impression was destroyed by fire.
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
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > children's game > other children's games > [noun] > noughts and crosses
tit-tat-toe1856
oughts and crosses1861
noughts and crosses1864
X's and O's1894
tick-tack-toe1960
1821 J. Ritson Caledonian Muse 175 For suredly, an owght I were To bede her taunte or cheke.
1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby iv. 24 I go back..to-morrow..and have got only three—three oughts an ought—three twos six—sixty pound.
1861 G. A. Sala Dutch Pictures ix. 130 A vile childish scrawl, done over a half smeared-out game of oughts and crosses.
1874 G. W. Dasent Half a Life 32 Units were taken for oughts, and oughts added to units.
1928 A. M. Davies Bk. with Seven Seals xiv. 160 We played at spillikens and ‘oughts and crosses’.
1979 W. Kennedy Ironweed i. 14 Strawberry Bill had played left field for Toronto in ought eight when Francis played third.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2004; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
oughtv.
/ɔːt/, U.S. /ɔt/, /ɑt/α. Old English ahtan (plural indicative), Old English ahtan (plural subjunctive), Old English ahte (1st and 3rd singular indicative, singular subjunctive), Old English ahten (plural indicative), Old English ahten (plural subjunctive), Old English ahtes (rare), Old English ahtest (2nd singular indicative), Old English ahton (plural indicative), Old English ahton (plural subjunctive), Old English ahtun (plural indicative), Old English eahton (rare), late Old English–early Middle English agte, late Old English–early Middle English hahte, early Middle English æhtæ, early Middle English æhte, early Middle English ahhte ( Ormulum), early Middle English aichte, early Middle English aihte, early Middle English awcte, early Middle English (Middle English northern) achte, early Middle English (Middle English northern) ahte, Middle English acht (chiefly northern), Middle English aghet (chiefly northern), Middle English aght, Middle English aghte, Middle English agt, Middle English aȝt, Middle English aȝte, Middle English ahut (chiefly northern), Middle English aucte, Middle English auȝght, Middle English aughte, Middle English auȝhte, Middle English augt, Middle English auȝt, Middle English auȝte, Middle English auȝthe, Middle English auȝtte, Middle English auht, Middle English auhte, Middle English aute, Middle English awghtte, Middle English awȝt, Middle English awȝte, Middle English awt, Middle English awte, Middle English haȝt (chiefly northern), Middle English haught (in a late copy), Middle English hauht, Middle English haut, Middle English haute, Middle English hawt, Middle English–1500s awght, Middle English–1500s awghte, Middle English–1600s aught; English regional 1800s auft (south-western), 1800s– auf (south-western), 1800s– aufght (south-western), 1800s– aught, 1800s– har (Norfolk, before t), 1900s– awt (Yorkshire); Scottish pre-1700 ach, pre-1700 aht, pre-1700 auch, pre-1700 auchtt, pre-1700 auht, pre-1700 autht, pre-1700 avcht, pre-1700 awch, pre-1700 awcht, pre-1700 awght, pre-1700 awghtht, pre-1700 awth, pre-1700 awtht, pre-1700 awych, pre-1700 hauct, pre-1700 1700s– aucht, pre-1700 1700s– aught, pre-1700 (1900s– northern and north-eastern) acht, 1800s auwcht, 1800s– aicht, 1800s– echt, 1800s– yaucht (north-eastern), 1900s– aacht (north-eastern), 1900s– awkht (rare), 1900s– yacht (north-eastern); Irish English (northern) 1900s– aucht.
β. early Middle English oþte, early Middle English outh, Middle English hoght, Middle English howght, Middle English howte, Middle English hvte (transmission error), Middle English ofte, Middle English oght, Middle English oghte, Middle English oȝt, Middle English oȝte, Middle English oht, Middle English ohte, Middle English orlt (transmission error), Middle English oughtht, Middle English ouȝt, Middle English ouȝte, Middle English ouht, Middle English ouhte, Middle English oute, Middle English outhe, Middle English owet, Middle English owghte, Middle English owȝt, Middle English owht, Middle English owhte, Middle English owtȝ (transmission error), Middle English owtȝe (transmission error), Middle English owthte, Middle English ozte (transmission error), Middle English 1600s out, Middle English–1500s hought, Middle English–1500s oughte, Middle English–1500s owte, Middle English–1600s oft, Middle English–1600s owght, Middle English–1700s owt, Middle English– ought; English regional 1700s– oft (south-western), 1800s hoft (south-western), 1800s– off (south-western), 1800s– oht, 1800s– ort, 1800s– owght, 1800s– owt; U.S. regional 1800s– ort; Scottish pre-1700 oght, pre-1700 owcht, pre-1700 1700s– ocht, pre-1700 1700s– oucht, pre-1700 1700s– ought; also Irish English (northern) 1800s– ocht.
γ. Middle English eght, Middle English hihte, Middle English ight, Middle English iȝte, Middle English iht, Middle English ihte, Middle English yight (transmission error); English regional 1800s eught (Yorkshire), 1800s hewt (Lincolnshire), 1800s– ewt (Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and East Anglian); N.E.D. (1903) also records a form Middle English ighte.
δ. late Middle English oftyd, late Middle English ouȝtide, 1500s (1800s regional) oughted.
With negative particle affixed Old English–early Middle English nahte, Middle English naȝt, Middle English naut, Middle English noȝte, Middle English noughte, Middle English nouht, Middle English nozte (transmission error), 1700s– oughtn't Brit./ˈɔːtnt/, U.S. /ˈɔtnt/, /ˈɑtnt/; English regional (Yorkshire) 1800s owdant, 1800s owtan't; Scottish 1800s ouchtna, 1900s– ochtna; U.S. regional 1800s ortn't, 1900s– orten', 1900s– ortent, 1900s– oughten, 1900s– ought'n. I. As a main verb.
* In senses expressing possession.† 2. transitive. ought (something) to yield: had (something) to pay. Cf. owe v. 2. Obsolete.In later use merged with sense 6 (see discussion s.v. owe v.).
1. † b. transitive. Took or gained possession of. Cf. owe v. 1b. Obsolete.† c. intransitive. With inversion of sense: belonged. Obsolete. rare.
a.
(a) transitive. As past tense: possessed, owned. Cf. owe v. 1. Now Scottish (northern and north-eastern).In quot. OE at α. with object implied.
ΘΚΠ
society > morality > duty or obligation > [verb (transitive)]
birc950
oughtOE
behovec1175
dowa1225
liea1225
owea1250
it stands one upona1393
liea1400
busc1400
hovec1450
to stand (a person) in (also on) handc1555
import1561
stand1602
befit1604
to stand on ——1608
to lie with1885
α.
β. a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 177 He..bead for to makien hire cwene of al ðet he ouhte.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) 7187 Garengan wes an eorl þe Kent ohte longe.a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 3229 Þe king ebrouns it ouȝt þat was hire lord bi-fore.a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. 4984 (MED) That other hath his othes swore..If that it myhte so befalle That he out of the pet him broghte, Of all the goodes which he oghte He schal have evene halvendel.a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll.) 449 Than sir Gawayn turned hym and ran to hym that ought the lady..but the knyght..smote downe sir Gawayne and toke his lady with hym.a1500 (?a1450) Gesta Romanorum (Harl. 7333) (1879) 235 He that owte the shelde.a1535 T. More Dialoge of Comfort (1553) iii. vi. sig. O.iiiv Who ought your castle Cosin thre thousande yere agoe?1623 W. Lithgow Most Delectable Disc. Peregrination (new ed.) 109 The Turke who ought my Mulets, was for three dayes exceeding fauourable vnto me.1669 J. C. Irons Leith & its Antiquities II. 129 And to receive sum consideration yearlie fra thame that oucht the said chairs and stoolis.γ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) 6719 Þat lauerd þat þe same best iht [a1400 Trin. Cambr. ight] Sal þar-for ansuer at his miht.c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy 4212 Lamydon was lord & þe lond eght.OE Beowulf 31 Leof landfruma lange ahte.
lOE Writ of Ælfðryð, Winchester (Sawyer 1242) in F. E. Harmer Anglo-Saxon Writs (1952) 396 Se cyning cwæð þa þet he nahte nan land ut to syllanne.
lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1102 Se eorl Rotbert..hæfde þone eorldom her on lande on Scrobbes byrig þe his fæder Roger eorl ær ahte.
c1175 ( Homily: Hist. Holy Rood-tree (Bodl. 343) (1894) 8 He hæfde andweald ofer allæ þa dingæ þe he æhtæ & bead him þet he sceolde dauid to him clypian & sceawan him alle þa ðing & þa mamdmæs [read madmæs] ðe moyses æhte.
a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 33 Þah þu..ahtest al weorld iwald.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) 12518 Mine ælderen..ahten [c1300 Otho adde] alle þa leoden þe into Rome leien.
c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) 207 (MED) Þe king dede þe mayden arise And þe erl hire bitaucte, And al the lond he euere awcte.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) 4253 Alle þe gode and catel þat he aȝt.
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 156 Me salle haf wele alle þat þou euer auht.
c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 203 It schulde haue be restoryd to hem þat awtyn it.
c1450 (a1400) Libeaus Desconus (Calig. A.ii) (1969) 1027 (MED) Ne sawe Y neuer no juell So lykynge to my pay; God wold þat Y hym auȝte [a1500 Lamb. aught].
1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. 45 Off Kingis, that aucht that reawte.
1552 Abp. J. Hamilton Catech. Prol. f. 1v The Oxe hes knawin the man that aucht him.
c1626 H. Bisset Rolment Courtis (1922) II. 222 Quhat they war that aucht the schip.
c1650 J. Spalding Memorialls Trubles Scotl. & Eng. (1850) I. 205 The poor men that aucht thame follouit in.
1693 in Trans. Hawick Archaeol. Soc. (1917) 14 William Herkness aught this book.
1778 A. Ross Helenore (ed. 2) 35 They came at last unto a gentle place, And wha aught it, but an auld aunt of his?
1914 J. S. Angus Gloss. Shetland Dial. at Acht Wha acht it? = to whom did it belong?
1995 A. Fenton Craiters i. 29 In my time, e estate at aacht e place pit up a new widden lavvie for’s.
(b) transitive. Scottish. As present tense, chiefly in 3rd singular (sometimes inflected) present, plural present, and present participle: to possess; = owe v. 1.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > owning > own [verb (transitive)]
ownOE
oweOE
i-ahniec1000
ought1442
belong1921
1442 Ayr Burgh Court Bks. Nov. That na wyf met mele bot thai that aht it.
a1578 R. Lindsay Hist. & Cron. Scotl. (1728) 106 He that ought the house and made the banquet should say the grace.
a1598 D. Fergusson Sc. Prov. (1641) sig. Cv He that ought the cow, goes nearest her tail.
1608 in J. H. Macadam Baxter Bks. St. Andrews (1903) 72 That..na strangeris..see the handlyng, bot thai that awcht the meate.
1650 in W. B. Cook Stirling Antiquary (1908) IV. 156 She speired [quha] was aughting the kow that was foremost.
c1680 in 4th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS (1874) App. 516/1 James Skene..and Elizabeth Forbes ought this manuscript.
c1730 Ownership Rhymes in Bks. (Rymers Club, Edinb.) (1928) III. 167 James Liddell ought this book.
1826 J. Wilson Noctes Ambrosianae xxix, in Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Nov. 788 Without ony ill-will to the master that aughts him.
a1862 in A. Hislop Proverbs Scotl. (1862) 136 Let him haud the bairn that aughts the bairn.
1896 J. M. Barrie Sentimental Tommy 202 The man as ocht Jerusalem greets because the fair Circassian winna take him.
1923 P. Giles in Banffshire Jrnl. 8 May 10 A'body can drive the fite mear bit the man that yachts her.
(c) transitive. Scottish. As past participle: possessed (of). wha's aucht: who owns (see further J. A. H. Murray Dial. S. Counties Scotl. (1873) 193 and Sc. National Dict. at Aucht v.2).
ΚΠ
1568 A. Scott Poems (1896) iv. 31 And nevir speir quhais awcht hir.
1580 in D. H. Fleming Reg. Christian Congregation St. Andrews (1889) I. 449 Scho wes demandit..quha wes aucht the bairne scho wes wyth.
1790 R. Burns Poems & Songs (1968) II. 544 Whase aught thae Chiels maks a' this bustle here?
1829 W. Scott Old Mortality Introd., in Waverley Novels IX. 225 I would give half of what I am aught [possessing], to know if it is still in existence.
1882 Argyllshire Herald 3 June I'll tak my stick bulf across your crouch that'll gar ye wonner whizz aught ye.
1922 T. S. Cairncross Scot at Hame 53 But wha's aucht a' the liquor.
1925 E. C. Smith Mang Howes an Knowes 21 At yeh shop-door a motor stuid, an forrit A gaed ti finnd oot whae was ocht eet.
2002 D. Purves Pompitie Finnds Needle (SCOTS) i Ah wunner wha’s aucht this braw needle?
2016 W. Hershaw Stars are Aizles 18 Whit saul-less gowk jalouses that he's aucht the yirth ablaw?
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > acquisition > obtain or acquire [verb (transitive)]
wieldeOE
haveeOE
ofgoOE
oweOE
addlec1175
winc1175
avela1200
to come by ——a1225
covera1250
oughtc1275
reachc1275
hentc1300
purchasec1300
to come to ——c1330
getc1330
pickc1330
chevise1340
fang1340
umbracec1350
chacche1362
perceivea1382
accroacha1393
achievea1393
to come at ——a1393
areach1393
recovera1398
encroach?a1400
chevec1400
enquilec1400
obtainc1422
recurec1425
to take upc1425
acquirea1450
encheve1470
sortise1474
conques?a1500
tain1501
report1508
conquest1513
possess1526
compare1532
cough1550
coff1559
fall1568
reap1581
acquist1592
accrue1594
appurchasec1600
recoil1632
to get at ——1666
to come into ——1672
rise1754
net1765
to fall in for1788
to scare up1846
access1953
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) 13185 Brutlond heo ahten, and France heo biwunnen.
c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) 1941 ‘ȝe of þe chepe no charg,’ quoþ chefly þat oþer, ‘As is pertly payed þe chepez þat I aȝte.’
c1450 (?a1400) Parl. Thre Ages (BL Add. 31042) 392 (MED) Sir Betys, the beryne, the beste of his tyme, Idores his awnn lufe aughte he hym-seluen.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > owning > belong [verb (intransitive)] > belonged
ought1485
1485 Malory's Morte Darthur (Caxton) vi. v. sig. k.vv There came the knyghte to whome the pauelione ought.
ΚΠ
OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. xviii. 24 Unus qui debeat decem milia talenta : enne seðe ahte to geldanne [OE Rushw. scalde]..tea ðusendo cræftas.
OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Luke vii. 41 Unus debeat denarios quingentos : an ahte to geldanne penningas fif hund.
c1175 ( Ælfric Homily (Bodl. 343) in S. Irvine Old Eng. Homilies (1993) 37 He spæc þa wið ænne mon þe him ahte to ȝeldene ten þusend pundæ.
** In senses expressing debt.† 4. figurative.† 5. transitive. Was indebted or beholden for; owed. Cf. owe v. 5. Obsolete.
3. † b. intransitive. Was in debt to. Cf. owe v. 3b. Obsolete.† c. transitive. Was indebted to (a person). Cf. owe v. 4b. Obsolete.
a. † (b) transitive. As past participle: owed. Scottish in later use.
(a) transitive. As past tense: had to pay (money, goods, etc.); was under obligation to pay or render; owed. Cf. owe v. 3 and sense 6. In later use English regional (east midlands and East Anglian) and rare.
ΚΠ
α.
β. a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 185 Þu ȝulde þet tu ouhtest.c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Luke vii. 41 Oon ouȝte fyue hundrid pens.1417–18 in F. J. Furnivall Fifty Earliest Eng. Wills (1882) 39 Ȝf þer be eny man or woman þat wil say þat I howght hem eny goud..y wyl þat dey be payd.1485 Malory's Morte Darthur (Caxton) i. iii–v. sig. a.ijv He asked hir by the feith she ouȝt to hym.a1500 ( Pilgrimage of Soul (Egerton) (1953) iv. ix. f. 60v (MED) This wer a wonder thing to be asked, þat he schuld paye the dette þat nothing owght.1576 W. Lambarde Perambulation of Kent 246 Whether the Abbat of Sainct Augustines and his tenaunts ought suite to the Bishops Courte.1592 R. Greene Quip for Vpstart Courtier sig. G2 A mad merrie crue..leping ouer the field as frolikly as if they ought not all the world two pence.1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 iii. iii. 134 Hee..saide this other day you ought him a thousand pound. View more context for this quotation1677 tr. A.-N. Amelot de La Houssaie Hist. Govt. Venice 145 The Obedience he ought to his Superiours.c1685 Life A. Martindale (1845) 231 Burton..said he ought him nothing.1711 J. Strype Life M. Parker iii. xiv. 235 King Edward VI. ought him 300 l.a1903 C. G. de Betham in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1903) IV. 365/2 He never ought she anything.γ. 1828 W. Carr Dial. Craven (ed. 2) at Eught He eught me five shillings.a1855 W. T. Spurdens Forby's Vocab. E. Anglia (1879) at Ewt Owe, pt. t. ewt.1889 E. Peacock Gloss. Words Manley & Corringham, Lincs. (ed. 2) 269 He hewt his sarvant chaps o'must a year waage.δ. c1460 in A. Clark Eng. Reg. Oseney Abbey (1907) 203 (MED) Noþer he noþer hys men oony sute oftyd to þat myll.?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 101 An mon þet leiȝe inprisun & achte muche ranceun.
1436 W. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 15 John Roys never at noo tyme payed..for þe dette he aught to hym.
a1600 ( W. Stewart tr. H. Boece Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) I. 226 Quhair is the kyndnes thow aucht to Claudius?
1605 in J. D. Marwick Extracts Rec. Burgh Glasgow (1876) I. 242 All quha aucht commoune dairkis to the towne.
a1825 R. Forby Vocab. E. Anglia (1830) at Aught He aught me ten pounds.
ΚΠ
1392 in W. Fraser Lennox (1874) II. 46 Manredyn or sewte avcht of the sayde landis.
1404 in J. Raine Testamenta Eboracensia (1865) III. 27 (MED) Of all the remanant of my goodes and detts yat ben aught to me, do it for my soule, and pert it among my servantes.
c1480 (a1400) St. Lawrence 381 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 413 Ȝet paynis are aucht þe mony.
1495 in J. Bain Cal. Documents Scotl. (1888) IV. 327 [Paying] all maills, fermes, and dewties acht and wont.
1557 MSS Earls of Southesk in 7th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS (1879) 742 I mak Margret my ȝongast douchter my assignay..to all other sowmys of money oucht to me be quhat sumevyr other persoun.
1639 Conceits, Clinches, Flashes, & Whimzies (1860) 46 A gentleman who had ought him money a long time.
(c) transitive. Scottish. As present tense (with 3rd singular sometimes inflected) and in present participle: to have to pay; = owe v. 3.In quot. c1520 with object implied.
ΘΚΠ
society > morality > duty or obligation > [verb (transitive)] > have (a duty) > owe (a duty)
oweOE
shallc1325
oughtc1520
society > trade and finance > management of money > insolvency > indebtedness > owe [verb (transitive)]
shallc975
owec1175
ought1483
behove1496
rest1503
tick1674
to run up1684
ought1822
c1520 M. Nisbet New Test. in Scots (1903) II. Philemon 18 Gif he has ony thing anoyit thee, outhir auchtis.
1552 Abp. J. Hamilton Catech. Pref. Ye reuerence yat ȝe aucht to our Lord Jesus Christ.
1588 A. King tr. P. Canisius Cathechisme or Schort Instr. Cert. Deuot Prayers 32 To the surly, we aught al that we can doe, al that we liue, al that we vnderstand.
1822 W. Scott Fortunes of Nigel I. v. 142 We aught him the siller, and will pay him wi' our convenience.
1876 W. Robbie Mains of Yonderton xx, in Weekly Free Press (Aberdeen) 8 Jan. 2/2 He'll seen be able t' pay a' body fat he's auchten them.
1932 in Sc. National Dict. I. 93/1 [Morayshire] We aucht him fower poun a year syne.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > management of money > insolvency > indebtedness > be in debt [verb (intransitive)]
owe1455
oughta1464
to be indebted1601
outstand1729
a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 130 Þis kyng of Aragon..deneyed it [sc. service], and saide he aute non but to þe kyng of Spayn.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > management of money > insolvency > indebtedness > owe [verb (transitive)]
shallc975
owec1175
ought1483
behove1496
rest1503
tick1674
to run up1684
ought1822
1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende 277 b/1 The good man..constrayned hym by his othe to swere whether he ought hym or no.
1610 J. Healey tr. St. Augustine Citie of God vi. vii. 246 That the first man shee mette..should pay her for the sport that Hercules ought her for.
a. Held; rendered (esp. allegiance, duty, service); bore, entertained (ill or good will), cherished (a grudge, a spite, regarded as something yet to be paid or rendered). Hence (occasionally), more generally: showed; rendered.
(a) transitive. As past tense. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > practice, exercise, or doing > practise or carry on [verb (transitive)] > practise or exercise towards others > showed or rendered
oughta1375
α.
β. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 1080 (MED) His sondes þanne he sente..to alle þe lordes..þat ouȝten him omage or ani seute elles.1465 M. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 297 He ought you ryght gode wyll.a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. ii. xlviii. f. xvi By his excersisyng of Iustyce ye Brytons ought to hym more fauour than to eyther of his neuewes.a1529 J. Skelton Phyllyp Sparowe (?1545) sig. B.i So trayterously my byrde to kyll That neuer ought the euyll wyll.1559 W. Baldwin et al. Myrroure for Magistrates Northumberland v Til Fortune ought both him and vs a spite.1597 T. Beard Theatre Gods Iudgements i. xxv. 148 He purposed to stab one whome hee ought a grudge vnto with his dagger.1677 A. Marvell Acct. Growth Popery 85 He highly inveighed against many Gentlemen..that ought him no homage, as persons disaffected.γ. c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy 5325 Ercules..edist of my knightes, He was þi fader so fuerse, þat me faithe eght.1399 Rolls of Parl. III. 451/2 The Kyng..charged hem..by the feith and the ligeance that thei aght to hym, for to telle hym the Sothe.
a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 133 Jon..wrote onto Edward þat he awte him no subjeccion, but he was annexed and swore to the kyng of Frauns.
c1613 in T. Stapleton Plumpton Corr. (1839) 112 He haught a favor & good lordship to his servant Kilborne.
(b) transitive. As past participle. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
?1435 in C. L. Kingsford Chrons. London (1905) 43 (MED) Alle togedirs..have chosen the same persones..to resigne and yelde vp unto kyng Richard her homage and ffewte, that they hadde made and ouht to hym byfore.
a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll.) 487 He hath oughte you and all us ever good wyll.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) 2 Macc. xii. 3 As though they had ought them no euell wyll.
b. transitive. Owed; had to repay (esp. an ill turn, shame, etc.). Cf. owe v. 4. Obsolete.In quot. 1672 as past participle.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > reciprocal treatment or return of an action > treat one as he has been treated [verb (transitive)] > requite or pay back (a person) > be due to requite
owea1375
oughtc1430
society > morality > duty or obligation > [verb (transitive)] > have (a duty) > owe (a duty) > owed
oughtc1430
c1430 (c1386) G. Chaucer Legend Good Women 1609 Fortune hire oughte a foul myschaunce.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1897–1973) 314 I aght the a fowll dispyte.
1575 W. Stevenson Gammer Gurtons Nedle i. iii. sig. Aiiiv The Deuill or els his dame, they ought her sure a shame.
a1652 R. Brome Damoiselle iii. i, in Wks. (1873) I. 416 The Devill sure Ought me a mischiefe, when he enabled that Old Wretch, my Father to beget me.
1672 A. Marvell Rehearsal Transpros'd i. 4 The Press hath ought him a shame a long time, and is but now beginning to pay off the Debt.
1694 R. L'Estrange Fables (1714) cclxxviii. 294 The Devil ought him a shame, and paid him both interest and principal.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > gratitude > thank [verb (transitive)] > make indebted by kindness > was indebted
ought1594
1594 1st Pt. Raigne Selimus sig. C4 Your Emperour ought his safetie vnto you.
1651 tr. F. de Quintana Hist. Don Fenise 167 I saw I ought my life to this Cavalier.
a1658 J. Cleveland Rustick Rampant in Wks. (1687) 505 To whose Christian Piety he ought the two last Days of his Life.
II. As a modal auxiliary.
* Expressing duty or obligation of any kind; originally used of moral obligation, but also in various more general senses, expressing what is proper, correct, advisable, befitting, or expected. Originally and chiefly in past tense form (indicative or subjunctive), which may be either past or present in meaning. (The only current use in standard English.)The subject is properly the person (or thing) bound by the obligation. The latter is expressed by a following infinitive (with, formerly also without, to), sometimes only implied from the context. With a non-personal subject, or followed by a passive infinitive, it expresses obligation on the part of an agent who is not specified in the clause but contextually implied (the subject in the case of the passive construction being the person, etc., to whom the obligation is due); e.g. the hearth ought to lie level = it is advisable that one builds the hearth level; parents ought to be honoured = one has a duty to honour parents.† 6. As the past tense of owe v. 6: = owed it to duty; was (were) bound or under moral obligation (to do something); it was my (your, his, their, etc.) duty; it was right or proper for me (you, him, them, etc.). Usually (and in later use, only) in subordinate clause, corresponding to a preceding past tense in the principal clause: he said you ought = he said it was your duty, he said you had to. (Cf. sense 7b.) Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > morality > duty or obligation > [verb (transitive)] > behoved
oughtc1300
α.
β. c1300 St. Lucy (Harl.) 4 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S.-Eng. Legendary (1956) 566 (MED) Of such a child wel glad heo was, as heo wel ouȝte.a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1969) Isa. v. 4 What is þat I owte [a1382 Douce 369(1) awȝte; a1425 L.V. ouȝt] mor to do to my vyne-ȝerde & dide not to it?c1425 J. Lydgate Troyyes Bk. (Augustus A.iv) ii. 697 (MED) Euery hous cured was with led And many gargoyl..With spoutis þoruȝ & pipes as þei ouȝt, From þe ston-werke to þe canel rauȝt.a1500 (a1450) Generides (Trin. Cambr.) 1060 (MED) Iustice was kept like wise as it owt.1556 N. Grimald tr. Cicero Thre Bks. Duties iii. f. 134 He ought in that case, to recompense him.1645 in J. Stuart Extracts Council Reg. Aberdeen (1872) II. 39 And that they ocht and sould be satisfied and payit for [etc.].1692 E. Walker tr. Epictetus Enchiridion (1737) To Mr. Walker 61 Till you..did kindly teach Apollo, what he out to preach.δ. c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 157 Summe symple persoones hadden thilk opinion, tho iij seid persoones ouȝtiden to be slayn.OE Old Eng. Hexateuch: Gen. (Claud.) xxxix. 4 Iosep hæfde micle gyfe æt his hlaforde & þenode him; & betæhte him eal þæt he ahte to bewitenne.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Þe eorl heold Lincol agænes þe king, & benam him al ðæt he ahte to hauen.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 19108 Þehh ne cnew himm nohht. Þe werelld. alls itt ahhte.
?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) 267 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 295 (MED) And þo þe vntreunesse deden ȝam, hi ahte [v.rr. solden, schulden] ben holde.
c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) 2787 Yif þat she aucte quen to be.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 4135 (MED) He truste to hom mest as me þincþ he wel aȝte.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Isa. v. 4 What is that I awȝte mor to do to my vyneȝerde, and dide not to it?
1516 in M. Livingstone Reg. Secreti Sigilli Regum Scotorum (1908) I. 412/2 Thomas hes done that he acht to do.
a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Royal) viii. 52 Robert þe Brwys, Erle of Karryk Aucht to succeed to þe Kynryke.
7.
a. As present or future tense: am (is, are) bound or under moral obligation; it is my (your, his, their, etc.) duty; it is right or proper for me (you, him, them, etc.). (The most frequent use throughout. Formerly expressed by the present tense of owe v. 6.)This use probably arose in clauses expressing hypothetical or counterfactual situations, for which the past tense (originally the past subjunctive, but this was not formally distinct from the indicative at the time in question) has been a marker since early times.
(a) With to and infinitive.
ΚΠ
α.
β. a1325 (?c1300) Northern Passion (Cambr. Gg.1.1) 753 (MED) Wel þou sest in owre nede, Þou it outest mest to drede.a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) viii. 2991 (MED) Ther ys no staat in his degree That noughte to desire pes.a1425 (c1385) G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde (1987) v. 545 Wel oughtestow to falle, and I to dye.a1475 Bk. Hawking (Harl. 2340) f. 6 (MED) Knytte bothe thredes on the top of his hede; then she is enciled as she oght to be.1484 W. Caxton tr. Subtyl Historyes & Fables Esope ii. i Whan men haue that which men oughte to haue they ought to be ioyful and glad.1529 T. Wolsey in W. B. Scoones Four Cent. Eng. Lett. (1880) 10 [This] owt to moue petyfull hertys.1558 J. Knox First Blast against Monstruous Regiment Women f. 7 Suche as oght to mainteine the truth and veritie of God.a1592 R. Greene Orpharion (1599) 57 We oft rightly to think of women, seeing so oft we seeke their fauors.1637 W. Laud Speech in Starr-chamber 56 The Holy Table ought to stand at the upper end of the Quire, North and South, or Altar-wise.?1637 T. Hobbes tr. Aristotle Briefe Art Rhetorique i. 59 The Judge ought to discerne betweene true and adulterate Justice.1662 E. Stillingfleet Origines Sacræ ii. ii. §2 It ought to be looked upon with veneration.1717 A. Pope Eloisa to Abelard in Wks. 426 I ought to grieve, but cannot what I ought.1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones III. vii. xiii. 105 When Gentlemen admit inferior Parsons into their Company, they oft to keep their Distance. View more context for this quotation1771 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) II. xlviii. 181 The precedent ought to be followed.1805 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. V. 89 An alien..ought not to be permitted to levy a fine.1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. x. 592 To convince him that he ought to stay where he was.1880 L. Parr Adam & Eve xvii. 244 Up when they oft to be abed, and abed when they oft to be up.1930 E. Waugh Vile Bodies ix. 150 You ought to think yourself lucky..to get a good position like that in these days.1967 G. Vidal Washington, D.C. II. ii. 70 If it benefits all the people to confiscate your father's money then it ought to be confiscated.1988 Jrnl. Theol. Stud. 39 654 Poetry ought not to allow itself to become merely illustrative.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 5 Þes we ahte to beon þe edmoddre.
a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Lamb.) 129 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 167 Þet achten we to leuen wel.
c1225 (?c1200) Hali Meiðhad (Bodl.) (1940) 504 Þu ahtest wummon þis werc..ouer alle þing to schunien.
a1350 (c1307) in R. H. Robbins Hist. Poems 14th & 15th Cent. (1959) 22 Al englond ahte forte knowe of wham þat song is þat y synge.
c1350 Apocalypse St. John: A Version (Harl. 874) (1961) 122 (MED) Þere nys non þat ne auȝtte [v.r. muste] to drede þe lorde.
1447 O. Bokenham Lives of Saints (Arun.) (1938) 2413 (MED) Þe al oonly I haue and no mo, wych awtyst to be The lyght of myn eyn.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1897–1973) 131 (MED) Thou sklanders hym yll; thou aght to repent.
a1586 T. Hudson Epit. in W. A. Craigie Maitland Folio MS. (1919) I. clxxxi. 448 Quhat we have beine now ar and aucht to be.
a1609 J. Skene Form Baron Courts i. §11 in tr. Regiam Majestatem f. 100v The Clerk aucht to inroll them formallie.
1658 in E. M. Thompson Corr. Family of Hatton (1878) I. 15 Therefore I aught to begg your pardon.
(b) With bare infinitive. Now usually in negative and interrogative constructions. Cf. need v.2 10c.
ΚΠ
α.
β. c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (1973) 1913 Ȝet ne seh Katerine nanes cunnes pine þet ha oht dredde.c1300 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Cambr.) (1966) l. 678 If cunde hit þolie miȝte, Ihc oȝte [a1400 Egerton shuld] deie tuye wiþ riȝte.c1390 G. Chaucer Melibeus 2128 A litel thyng..That oghte liken yow.c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 218 He ouȝte more tent ȝeue to his owne good lyuyng..than he out ȝeue tent to the good lyuyng of eny other persoon.1547 W. Baldwin Treat. Morall Phylos. iii. xxii*. sig. Pviij Men ought not wepe for hym yt giltles is slayne, But for the slayer.1589 ‘Pasquill of England’ Returne of Pasquill sig. B Her Maiestie layeth such a logge vppon their consciences, as they ought not beare.a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) i. i. 3 You ought not walke Vpon a labouring day, without the signe Of your Profession. View more context for this quotation1649 J. Milton Tenure of Kings 13 On the autority of Law the autority of a Prince depends, & to the Laws ought submit.1751 E. Haywood Hist. Betsy Thoughtless IV. xiii. 141 Ought my friendship to the husband render me insensible of the beauties of the wife?1788 A. Hamilton Federalist Papers lxxiii The one ought not be left to the mercy of the other.1815 Zeluca III. 318 Do not get habituated to a word you ought never use.1877 R. Browning tr. Aeschylus Agamemnon 64 How ought I address thee, how ought I revere thee?1928 R. Hall Well of Loneliness xxiii. 208 Shall I wash your new crêpe de Chine nightgowns, ma'am? Or ought they go to the cleaners?1992 J. Stern & M. Stern Encycl. Pop Culture 403/1 There ought not be any doubt about it: Elvisism has begun.1999 Oxf. Times 26 Mar. (Weekend Suppl.) 5/3 Ought I feel ashamed of my ignorance?a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Lamb.) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 159 Mi wit ahte bon mare.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 9281 Ich þonke ȝou as ich wel aȝte [v.r. aute] do.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 267 Cursur o werld man aght it call.
c1400 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Trin. Cambr. R.3.14) (1960) A. ii. 21 I auȝte ben hiȝere þan heo.
c1450 tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Lyfe Manhode (Cambr.) (1869) 192 Þe vengeaunce of god..of whiche alle auhten haue drede.
a1600 in J. G. Dalyell Scotish Poems 16th Cent. (1801) II. 271 Than acht he be of all puissance denude.
(c) With implied infinitive taken from the context, usually the previous clause.
ΚΠ
c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 5 Þis nis nawt ibet ȝet ase wel as hit ahte.
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. v. 120 (MED) I myȝte nouȝte eet many ȝeres as a man ouȝte [c1400 C text auhte].
c1450 C. d'Orleans Poems (1941) 20 (MED) In alle y ought, so am y ay yowris.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Titus i. 11 Teachinge thinges which they ought not, because of filthy lucre.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. 594 The mortar..hath not that binding as it ought, and so the walls built therewith are not sodred accordingly.
1671 J. Dryden Evening's Love Pref. I admire and applaud him where I ought.
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 268. ⁋1 It is not that I think I have been more witty than I ought of late.
1738 A. Pope Wks. II. ii. 164 She speaks, behaves, and acts just as she ought.
1812 Ld. Byron Waltz vii His Sancho thought The knight's fandango friskier than it ought.
1870 Putnam's Mag. Sept. 275/2 The present players did whatever they ought not.
1976 N. C. Chaudhuri Culture in Vanity Bag iii. iii. 118 An egregious mammary and even mamillary ostentation stalks where it ought not.
2001 N.Y. Rev. Bks. 17 May 67/1 If Hirohito had been studying his in-box, as ‘a divine priest-king’ ought, he might have suspected that the US had been trying to get a rise out of him for many years.
(d) In inflected forms (3rd singular present and formerly present participle). In later use U.S. regional (southern, in African-American usage) and rare.
ΚΠ
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection i. sig. Di The more he oughteth to dispose hymselfe to fede of this heuenly meate.
1654 A. Cokayne tr. G. F. Loredano Dianea ii. 123 The cause is common to all, Kings oughting not to suffer Usurpation of States in others, lest they finde the experience of it in their owne.
1823 Knight's Q. Mag. 299 Her oughts to stay till her's got him i' the böat.
1927 E. C. L. Adams Congaree Sketches 18 Ellen oughts to love you.
b. With have and the past participle, expressing obligation regarding an action in the past: was (were) bound or under moral obligation; it was my (your, his, their, etc.) duty; it was right or proper for me (you, him, them, etc.).Normally with the implication that the action, etc., did not in fact occur.
ΚΠ
α.
β. 1437 Chancery Proc. Ser. C1 File 9 No. 157 (MED) Afore Richard fforster, than beyng mair of the seid town, oonly, wher ther ought to haue been both the mair and Shirref joyntly be vertue of her chartour to the burgeis of the seid toun.1539 Bible (Great) Matt. xxv. 27 Thou oughtest therfore to haue delyuered my money to the exchaungers.1551 Bible (Matthew's) 2 Kings v. 13 Yf ye prophet had byd the done some great thinge oughtest thou not then to haue done it?1552 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16279) Morninge Prayer sig. .ii We haue left vndone those thinges whiche we oughte to haue done.1641 Earl of Monmouth tr. G. F. Biondi Hist. Civil Warres Eng. I. i. 22 The doing of what of himself, as King, he ought unintreated to have done.1685 E. Stillingfleet Origines Britannicæ iv. 209 The want of skill may make Caradoc set his Gildas elder than he ought to have done.1715 D. Defoe Family Instructor I. i. i. 17 Dear Child! You ought to have been told who God is before now.1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) III. 379 I ought to have exhibited an example of valour.1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. v. 659 (note) Sir John Reresby, who ought to have been well informed, positively affirms that [etc.].1895 Law Times 99 465/1 Lord Londesborough knew, or ought to have known, that his bill of exchange was intended to circulate.1907 J. Conrad Secret Agent i. 7 He never offered to take Winnie to theatres, as such a nice gentleman ought to have done.1981 ‘Q. Crisp’ How to become Virgin 192 I ought to have crossed the Atlantic in early middle age.δ. 1567 A. Golding tr. Ovid Metamorphosis (new ed.) viii. f. 105 He oughted too haue pitied her.1850 C. Kingsley Alton Locke II. vii. 95 They oughted to ha' knowed better.?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 236 Ich wes of swich elde þet ich achte wel to habben wisluker iwite me.
c1400 (?c1380) Pearl 1139 (MED) Ani breste for bale aȝt haf forbrent Er he þerto hade had delyt.
a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1959) x. xiv. 58 I aucht and worthy was to haue bene slane.
8. impersonal or with non-referential it as subject. With person affected as indirect object.† a. As the past tense of owe v. 7: behoved, befitted; was due (to). Obsolete.Frequently in Chaucer.† b. As present tense: behoves, befits; is due (to). Obsolete.Frequently in Chaucer.
ΚΠ
α.
β. c1395 G. Chaucer Canon's Yeoman's Tale 1340 They weren as hem oghte be.c1450 (c1370) G. Chaucer A.B.C. 119 But oonly þer we dide not as us ouhte Doo.1485 Malory's Morte Darthur (Caxton) vi. xii. sig. l.iiij I haue no thynge done but that me ought for to doo.c1500 (a1400) Sir Cleges (Ashm.) (1913) 63 (MED) Hys rych maners to wede he sete; He thouȝt hym-selue oute to quyte.c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 7348 Watloker it aȝte her.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 6014 Ful wel þam aght þair king to blam!
c1475 (c1399) Mum & Sothsegger (Cambr. Ll.4.14) (1936) ii. 49 (MED) For frist at ȝoure anoyntynge alle were youre owen, Bothe hertis and hyndis and helde of non oþer; No lede of ȝoure lond, but as a liege aughte.
ΚΠ
α.
β. c1380 G. Chaucer Second Nun's Tale 14 Wel oghte vs werche and ydelnesse withstonde.c1390 G. Chaucer Pardoner's Tale 512 O glotonye, on thee wel oghte [v.r. awghtte] vs pleyne.c1390 G. Chaucer Parson's Tale 395 He þat..hath despit to doon that hym oghte [v.r. yight] to do.1423 Petition in Fenland Notes & Queries (1907–9) 7 308 (MED) Please it yowe to consider howe the dereigne and issues of ffresh waters to the See of certen townes liggyng abowve the saide towne of Sutton..er not sufficiantly repareld as yem oght to be.1477 Earl Rivers tr. Dictes or Sayengis Philosophhres (Caxton) (1877) lf. 3v If a kyng..leue to do eny of the lytil thynges that hym ought.a1500 Lancelot of Laik (1870) 2995 For well it oucht o prince or o king Til honore and til cheriss in al thing O worthi man.γ. c1390 in C. Horstmann Minor Poems Vernon MS (1892) i. 332 I ouȝte loue Ihesu, ful of miȝte, And worschipe him..as me well iȝte.c1429 Mirour Mans Saluacioune (1986) l. 3777 The forsaide stedes eght vs to visit.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) 12988 Þe ne haȝt haue na doute.
c1429 Mirour Mans Saluacioune (1986) l. 1199 Than aght vs offre to Crist golde of dileccioune.
c1440 (?a1400) Morte Arthure 1595 Me aughte to honour them in erthe ouer all oþer thyngez.
a1450 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1871) III. 84 Us auȝte not suppose þat þat perteyneþ unto God is like gold or silver.
a1450 (?1348) R. Rolle Form of Living (Cambr.) in Eng. Writings (1931) 99 (MED) Other many syns þar er of omission..if he have taken grace, to use it noght als hym aght, ne to kepe it noght.
c. With have and past participle: behoved, befitted. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iii. 166 (MED) Him oghte have be riht fain, For sche was there al sauf beside.
9. U.S. regional and English regional (midlands and southern). As past participle, forming a past perfect tense with had, in sense 7a.Recorded in 1989 in L. A. Pederson Ling. Atlas Gulf States: Techn. Index 199.
ΘΚΠ
society > morality > duty or obligation > [verb (intransitive)]
haveeOE
oweOE
byrc1175
needc1395
busc1400
had needa1425
behovec1475
fall1681
note1789
ought1816
oughta1840
1816 in H. C. Knight Lett. from South & West (1824) 30 They say..had not ought [sc. in Philadelphia].
1825 J. Neal Brother Jonathan I. iii. 57 Ye hadn't ought o' be away from your com'many.
1836 T. C. Haliburton Clockmaker 1st Ser. Introd. It don't seem to me that I had ought to be made a fool on in that book.
1853 W. D. Cooper Gloss. Provincialisms Sussex (ed. 2) 64 He hadn't ought to.
1895 ‘Rosemary’ Under Chilterns 172 Rose had ought to get married.
1920 S. Lewis Main St. x. 114 Maybe I hadn't ought to talk about Mrs. Haydock..in that fresh way.
1938 M. K. Rawlings Yearling x. 91 Penny said, ‘Now the bass had ought to be as thick as tadpoles in that pond right over there’.
1949 E. Webber Backwoods Teacher 18 Last year they had a little ol' flippety-snippet that I don't reckon was no better'n she'd ort to abeen.
1969 H. Brodkey in New Yorker 25 Jan. 32/3 I had ought to love this girl.
10. As infinitive.
a. Chiefly U.S. regional and English regional (midlands and southern) and colloquial (nonstandard). With did (formerly also †do). Chiefly in negative and emphatic contexts.
(a) Equivalent to sense 7a.
ΚΠ
1843 C. Dickens Martin Chuzzlewit (1844) xxi. 267 You speak a-larming well in public, but you didn't ought to go ahead so fast in private.
1847 S. T. Hurd Grammatical Corrector 29 You don't ought to return evil for evil.
1867 R. Young Rabin Hill's Excursion to Weston-super-Mare 12 That's jist how things did ought to be.
1942 ‘M. Innes’ Daffodil Affair i. 17 And I hope that none here will say I did anything I didn't ought. For I only done my duty.
a1979 J. Grenfell Turn back Clock (1983) 122 There is one voice among the altos that did not ought to be there.
(b) Equivalent to sense 7b.
ΚΠ
1844 C. Dickens Martin Chuzzlewit xxxiv. 403 You did n't ought to have received 'em.
1916 M. Diver Desmond's Daughter ii. ii. 50 My sainted aunt! You did ought to have been in the anteroom just now.
1932 D. L. Sayers Have his Carcase xxvii. 356 I did ought to have spoke up at the time.
1984 in C. Kightly Country Voices ii. 55 At night he was bad again—I'd give him some more, and I didn't ought to 'a done.
b. Chiefly U.S. regional and English regional. With should. Chiefly in negative contexts. Equivalent to sense 7.Recorded in 1989 in L. A. Pederson Ling. Atlas Gulf States: Techn. Index 199.
ΚΠ
1873 Timothy Towser 31 in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1903) IV. 365/2 You should oft for to be ashaamed of yourself.
1889 in E. Peacock Gloss. Words Wapentakes Manley & Corringham, Linc. (ed. 2) 389 Thayy shouldn't ought to press a strīght-gooin' man for his rent up to th' very daay.
1913 Dial. Notes 4 5 Shouldn't ought to have, ought not to have.
1916 R. W. Lardner You know me Al 144 I should ought to have 1 day of rest at home.
1940 R. Chandler Farewell, my Lovely 30 I shouldn't ought to barber with you.
c. U.S. regional (southern and south Midland). may ought, might ought: probably should, perhaps should.
ΚΠ
1938 Amer. Speech 13 4 You might ought to go.
1972 B. K. Green Some More Horse Tradin' 248 I really got to thinking that I might ought to hear the good Reverend preach.
1994 Amer. Speech 69 17 You might ought to have the oil changed.
** In epistemic use.Perhaps arising from instances of the deontic use in which the grammatical subject is non-personal and there is no unexpressed agent on whom the moral obligation might be imagined to fall.
11. Expressing expectation of an occurrence or belief in its likelihood: am (is, are) likely (to); may be expected (to).
a. In the present or future.
ΚΠ
1656 tr. T. Hobbes Elements Philos. iv. xxvi. 329 The Apogæum of the Sunne, or the Aphelium of the Earth ought to be about the 28th degree of Cancer.
1675 R. Boyle Exper. Mech. Origine Electr. 12 The heat or warmth that is thereby excited ought not to cease, as soon as ever the rubbing is over.
1754 Philos. Trans. 1753 (Royal Soc.) 48 268 A satellite, seen from the earth, ought to change its colour..and at last evanish in violet.
1820 Examiner No. 612. 1/2 A mode of testimony which ought to go a good way with the Laureat.
1844 M. M. Sherwood Hist. J. Marten xv. 205 A good flannel petticoat ought to be little the worse for one year's wear.
1870 D. G. Rossetti Let. 15 Mar. (1965) II. 817 He [sc. Stillman] is a complete Don Quixote in every way, and with such a Sancho as myself to back him, we ought not to lack for adventures.
1912 L. J. Vance Destroying Angel xix He should be able to catch the tide just as it was nearing high water. Allowing it to swing him north-west until it fulled, he ought to be a third of the way across by the time it slackened.
1934 D. Runyon in Cosmopolitan Sept. 84/1 Between the sole and the upper along about where his little toe ought to be.
1969 ‘G. Black’ Cold Jungle xi. 160 The birds ought to be busy on their dawn chorus out in the Hebrides, with a new day practically settled in.
2001 Financial Times 27 Jan. (Weekend Suppl.) XXII/1 Betting is getting cheaper. You can still lose your shirt, but with luck you ought to hold on to your suit, shoes and socks.
b. With have and past participle, referring to the past.
ΚΠ
1875 S. Wood & H. Lapham Waiting for Mail 39 Even at half fifty notes a week, You ought to have made a pile.
1894 Scribner's Mag. 16 655/2 ‘He ought to have had a delightful time,’ said Fair.
1898 E. Dubois in Sci. Trans. Royal Dublin Soc. 6 12 The Trinil individual, if a human being, ought to have been a microcephalic idiot.
1971 P. Berton Last Spike iii. ii. 99 He had survived a whole series of accidents any of which ought to have put him in his grave.
1990 J. Gribbin Hothouse Earth iv. 87 By running his calculations backwards in time from the middle of 1986, he gave a ‘backcast’ of how solar activity ought to have varied in the past.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2004; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
<
n.11678n.21821
v.OE