not

¹

[ not ]

adverb

1. (used to express negation, denial, refusal, or prohibition):

   You must not do that. It's not far from here.

2. U.S. Slang. (used jocularly as a postpositive interjection to indicate that a previous statement is untrue):

   I just love working overtime without pay. Not!

NOT

²

[ not ]

noun

1. a Boolean operator that returns a positive result if its operand is negative and a negative result if its operand is positive.

not-

³

1. variant of noto- before a vowel.

not

¹

/ nɒt /

adverb

1. 1. used to negate the sentence, phrase, or word that it modifies

      I will not stand for it

   2. ( in combination )

      they cannot go

2. not that
   conjunction which is not to say or suppose that Also (archaic)not but what

   I expect to lose the game — not that I mind

sentence substitute

1. used to indicate denial, negation, or refusal

   certainly not

not-

²

combining_form

1. a variant of noto-

Word History and Origins

Origin of not¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English; weak variant of nought

Word History and Origins

Origin of not¹

C14 not, variant of nought nothing, from Old English nāwiht, from nā no + wiht creature, thing. See naught , nought

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. not so much, Informal. (an expression of dismissive scorn, ambivalence, or skepticism):

   Attractive? Yes. Smart? Not so much.

   Is the world coming to an end? Yeah, not so much.

More idioms and phrases containing not

• all that glitters is not gold
• (not) all there
• (not) at all
• believe it or not
• caught dead, not be
• (not a) Chinaman's chance
• coming or going, not know if
• do as I say (not as I do)
• game is not worth the candle
• heart (not) in it
• hold one's breath, not
• (not) in the least
• (not) in the mood
• it's (not) your funeral
• last but not least
• like as not
• living soul, not a
• mince matters, not to
• more often than not
• (not) move a muscle
• no problem (not to worry)
• (not to) sneeze at
• (not) take no for an answer
• (not) the half of it
• (not) turn a hair
• two wrongs do not make a right
• waste not, want not
• whether or not
• without a (not a) leg to stand on
• won't (will not) hear of
• can't
• couldn't
• wouldn't

Example Sentences

As its suggests, this species was not originally native to North America.

From Salon

She's not alone in feeling tempted by ads; I'm not alone in feeling unsure of how to guide her.

From Salon

Mr Noble added that street performers were not being banned across Westminster.

From BBC

After that encounter, O'Sullivan called Carter "not a nice person" and "a nightmare" to play against after being criticised by his opponent.

From BBC

The Russian was banned for 15 months after testing positive for a substance she said she did not realise had been added to the banned list at the start of 2016.

From BBC