Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Nothing?

\Noth"ing\, n. [From no, a. + thing.] 1. Not anything; no thing (in the widest sense of the word thing); -- opposed to {anything} and {something}. Yet had his aspect nothing of severe. --Dryden. 2. Nonexistence; nonentity; absence of being; nihility; nothingness. --Shak. 3. A thing of no account, value, or note; something irrelevant and impertinent; something of comparative unimportance; utter insignificance; a trifle. Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought. --Is. xli. 24. 'T is nothing, says the fool; but, says the friend, This nothing, sir, will bring you to your end. --Dryden. 4. (Arith.) A cipher; naught. {Nothing but}, only; no more than. --Chaucer. {To make nothing of}. (a) To make no difficulty of; to consider as trifling or important. ``We are industrious to preserve our bodies from slavery, but we make nothing of suffering our souls to be slaves to our lusts.'' --Ray. (b) Not to understand; as, I could make nothing of what he said.
\Noth"ing\, adv. In no degree; not at all; in no wise. Adam, with such counsel nothing swayed. --Milton. The influence of reason in producing our passions is nothing near so extensive as is commonly believed. --Burke. {Nothing off} (Naut.), an order to the steersman to keep the vessel close to the wind.