noun
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the ninth letter in the Greek alphabet (Ι, ι), a vowel or semivowel, transliterated as i or j
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(usually used with a negative) a very small amount; jot (esp in the phrase not one or an iota )
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of iota
1600–10; < Latin iōta < Greek iôta < Semitic; compare Hebrew yōdh yod
Explanation
If you don't care one iota about something, it means you don’t care about it even one little bit. An iota is something very small. An iota is the smallest letter of the Greek alphabet. The expression "not one iota" comes from the Bible (Matthew 5:18): "For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished."
Vocabulary lists containing iota
To Kill a Mockingbird
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 20–25
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Words You Need to See in the Wild
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
McInnes changed the shape of his four or five times and the poverty of their play didn't improve one iota.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
“I have not felt that one iota since becoming a parent,” Moore said, adding she has formed “meaningful relationships” with other parents.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026
But even those betray an iota of human-made whimsy, a sparkle of vulnerability.
From Slate ● Jan. 7, 2026
Like the film’s title, the jokes in “Happy Gilmore 2” don’t require a single iota of thought, only a death-grip on nostalgia.
From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2025
The oblate felt awful hiding even an iota of truth from this honest man.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
Here & there, they admit, among Vogt's errors, prejudices, mysticism and reckless appeals to emotion, they can find iotas of truth-but not many.
From Time Magazine Archive
At random moments when Kopit tosses his thinking cap away for vaudeville, the play generates iotas of fun.
From Time Magazine Archive
"We are just one iota among countless iotas in the universe," Drake insists.
From Time Magazine Archive
Thus it is that in the Word Divine things and arcana of heaven are contained even in its iotas, points and tittles.
From Heaven and its Wonders and Hell by John Ager
Mr. Tompsett-King deprecated all dottings of iotas; when Philippa stormed at society he hummed a sad little tune.
From Rest Harrow A Comedy of Resolution by Maurice Henry Hewlett
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
