no ['nō] -adv

  1. not
  2. used as a function word to express the negative of an alternative choice or possibility
    • shall we go out to dinner or no
  3. in no respect or degree used in comparisons
    • you're no better than the rest of us
  4. not so used to express negation, dissent, denial, or refusal
    • no, I'm not going
  5. used with a following adjective to imply a meaning expressed by the opposite positive statement
    • in no uncertain terms
  6. used as a function word to emphasize a following negative or to introduce a more emphatic, explicit, or comprehensive statement
    • it's big, no, it's gigantic
  7. used as an interjection to express surprise, doubt, or incredulity
  8. used in combination with a verb to form a compound adjective
    • no -bake pie
  9. in negation
    • shook his head no
  10. not any
    • no parking
    • no disputing the decision
  11. hardly any : very little
    • finished in no time
  12. not a : quite other than a
    • he's no expert
  13. used in combination with a noun to form a compound adjective
    • a no -nonsense realist
  14. an act or instance of refusing or denying by the use of the word no: denial
    • received a firm no in reply
  15. a negative vote or decision
  16. persons voting in the negative
  17. north; northern
  18. number

NOAA -abbr

  1. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

noaccount -adj, n

  1. of no importance : trifling
  2. not amounting to anything : shiftless
    • her noaccount son

No·a·chi·an [nō-'ā-kē-ən] -adj

  1. of or relating to the patriarch Noah or his time
  2. ancient, antiquated

No·ah ['nō-ə] -n

  1. an Old Testament patriarch who built the ark in which he, his family, and living creatures of every kind survived the Flood

nob ['näb] -n

  1. head
  2. a jack of the same suit as the starter in cribbage that scores one point for the holder usu. used in the phrases his nob or his nobs
  3. one in a superior position in life

nob·ble ['nä-bəl] -vt, n

  1. to incapacitate (a racehorse) esp. by drugging
  2. to win over to one's side
  3. steal
  4. swindle, cheat
  5. to get hold of : catch

nob·by ['nä-bē] -adj

  1. chic, smart

No·bel·ist [nō-'be-list] -n

  1. a winner of a Nobel Prize

no·bel·i·um [nō-'be-lē-əm] -n

  1. a radioactive metallic element produced artificially

No·bel Prize [nō-'bel-, 'nō-,bel-] -n

  1. any of various annual prizes (as in peace, literature, medicine) established by the will of Alfred Nobel for the encouragement of persons who work for the interests of humanity called also Nobel

no·bil·i·ty [nō-'bi-lə-tē] -n

  1. the quality or state of being noble in character, quality, or rank
  2. the body of persons forming the noble class in a country or state : aristocracy

no·ble ['nō-bəl] -adj, n, adv

  1. possessing outstanding qualities : illustrious
  2. famous, notable
    • noble deeds
  3. of high birth or exalted rank : aristocratic
  4. possessing very high or excellent qualities or properties
    • noble wine
  5. very good or excellent
  6. grand or impressive esp. in appearance
    • noble edifice
  7. possessing, characterized by, or arising from superiority of mind or character or of ideals or morals : lofty
    • a noble ambition
  8. chemically inert or inactive esp. toward oxygen
    • a noble metal such as platinum

noble -n

  1. a person of noble rank or birth
  2. an old English gold coin equivalent to 6 s8 d

noble gas -n

  1. any of a group of rare gases that include helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon, and usu. radon and that exhibit great stability and extremely low reaction rates called also inert gas

no·ble·man ['nō-bəl-mən] -n

  1. a man of noble rank : peer

noble rot -n

  1. a botrytis fungus ( Botrytis cinerea) that infects various usu. overripe wine grapes causing shriveling which results in increased sugar and flavor content and is responsible for the characteristic flavor of sauternes and related wines

noble savage -n

  1. a mythic conception of people belonging to non-European cultures as having innate natural simplicity and virtue uncorrupted by European civilization
  2. a person exemplifying this conception

no·blesse [nō-'bles] -n

  1. noble birth or condition
  2. the members esp. of the French nobility

no·blesse oblige [nō-'bles-ə-'blēzh] -n

  1. the obligation of honorable, generous, and responsible behavior associated with high rank or birth

no·ble·wom·an ['nō-bəl-,wu̇-mən] -n

  1. a woman of noble rank : peeress

no·body ['nō-bə-dē, -,bä-dē] -pron

  1. no person : not anybody

nobody -n

  1. a person of no influence or consequence

nobrain·er ['nō-'brā-nər] -n

  1. something that requires a minimum of thought

no·ce·bo [,nō-'sē-(,)bō] -n

  1. a harmless substance that when taken by a patient is associated with harmful effects due to negative expectations or the psychological condition of the patient

no·cent ['nō-sᵊnt] -adj

  1. harmful

no·ci·cep·tive [,nō-si-'sep-tiv] -adj

  1. painful, injurious
  2. of, induced by, or responding to a nociceptive stimulus
    • nociceptive pain
    • a nociceptive nerve pathway

no·ci·cep·tor [,nō-si-'sep-tər] -n

  1. a receptor (as in the skin) for nociceptive stimuli : a pain sense organ

nock ['näk] -n

  1. one of the notches cut in either of two tips of horn fastened on the ends of a bow or in the bow itself for holding the string
  2. the part of an arrow having a notch for the bowstring
  3. the notch itself
  4. to make a nock in (a bow or arrow)
  5. to fit (an arrow) against the bowstring

no contest -n

  1. nolo contendere

noct·am·bu·list [näk-'tam-byə-list] -n

  1. a person who walks while asleep : sleepwalker

noc·ti·lu·cent cloud [,näk-tə-'lü-sᵊnt-] -n

  1. a luminous thin usu. colored cloud seen esp. at twilight at a height of about 50 miles (80 kilometers)

noc·tu·id ['näk-chə-wəd, 'näk-tə-] -n, adj

  1. any of a large family (Noctuidae) of medium-sized often dull-colored moths with larvae (as cutworms and armyworms) that are often destructive agricultural pests

noc·turn ['näk-,tərn] -n

  1. a principal division of the office of matins

noc·tur·nal [näk-'tər-nᵊl] -adj, adv

  1. of, relating to, or occurring in the night
    • a nocturnal journey
  2. active at night
    • a nocturnal predator

noc·turne ['näk-,tərn] -n

  1. a work of art dealing with evening or night
  2. a dreamy pensive composition for the piano

noc·u·ous ['nä-kyə-wəs] -adj, adv

  1. harmful

nod ['näd] -vb, n

  1. to make a quick downward motion of the head whether deliberately (as in expressing assent or salutation) or involuntarily (as from drowsiness)
  2. to incline or sway from the vertical as though ready to fall
  3. to bend or sway the upper part gently downward or forward : bob gently
  4. to make a slip or error in a moment of abstraction
  5. to incline (as the head) downward or forward
  6. to bring, invite, or send by a nod
    • nodded us in
  7. to signify by a nod
    • nodded their approval
  8. the act or an instance of nodding
    • gave a nod of greeting
  9. an indication esp. of approval or recognition

nod·al ['nō-dᵊl] -adj, n, adv

  1. being, relating to, or located at or near a node

nodding -adj

  1. bending downward or forward : drooping
    • nodding flowers
  2. slight, superficial
    • a nodding acquaintance

nod·dle ['nä-dᵊl] -n

  1. head, pate

nod·dy ['nä-dē] -n

  1. a stupid person
  2. any of several stout-bodied terns (esp. genus Anous) of warm seas

node ['nōd] -n

  1. a pathological swelling or enlargement (as of a rheumatic joint)
  2. a discrete mass of one kind of tissue enclosed in tissue of a different kind
  3. an entangling complication (as in a drama) : predicament
  4. either of the two points where the orbit of a planet or comet intersects the ecliptic
  5. either of the points at which the orbit of an earth satellite crosses the plane of the equator
  6. a point, line, or surface of a vibrating body or system that is free or relatively free from vibratory motion
  7. a point at which a wave has an amplitude of zero
  8. a point at which subsidiary parts originate or center
  9. a point on a stem at which a leaf or leaves are inserted
  10. a point at which a curve intersects itself in such a manner that the branches have different tangents
  11. vertex

node of Ran·vier [-'räⁿ-vē-,ā]

  1. a small gap in the myelin sheath of a myelinated nerve fiber

nod off -vi

  1. to fall asleep

no·dose ['nō-,dōs] -adj, n

  1. having numerous or conspicuous protuberances

nod·u·lar ['nä-jə-lər] -adj

  1. of, relating to, characterized by, or occurring in the form of nodules
    • nodular lesions

nod·u·la·tion [,nä-jə-'lā-shən] -n

  1. the process of forming nodules and esp. root nodules containing symbiotic bacteria
  2. nodule

nod·ule ['nä-(,)jül] -n

  1. : a small mass of rounded or irregular shape: as
  2. a small rounded lump of a mineral or mineral aggregate
  3. a swelling on a leguminous root that contains symbiotic bacteria
  4. a small abnormal knobby bodily protuberance (as a tumorous growth or a calcification near an arthritic joint)

no·dus ['nō-dəs] -n

  1. complication, difficulty

no·el [nō-'el] -n

  1. a Christmas carol
  2. christmas

noes ['nō] -adv

(variant of no)

  1. not
  2. used as a function word to express the negative of an alternative choice or possibility
    • shall we go out to dinner or no
  3. in no respect or degree used in comparisons
    • you're no better than the rest of us
  4. not so used to express negation, dissent, denial, or refusal
    • no, I'm not going
  5. used with a following adjective to imply a meaning expressed by the opposite positive statement
    • in no uncertain terms
  6. used as a function word to emphasize a following negative or to introduce a more emphatic, explicit, or comprehensive statement
    • it's big, no, it's gigantic
  7. used as an interjection to express surprise, doubt, or incredulity
  8. used in combination with a verb to form a compound adjective
    • no -bake pie
  9. in negation
    • shook his head no
  10. not any
    • no parking
    • no disputing the decision
  11. hardly any : very little
    • finished in no time
  12. not a : quite other than a
    • he's no expert
  13. used in combination with a noun to form a compound adjective
    • a no -nonsense realist
  14. an act or instance of refusing or denying by the use of the word no: denial
    • received a firm no in reply
  15. a negative vote or decision
  16. persons voting in the negative
  17. north; northern
  18. number

no·et·ic [nō-'e-tik] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or based on the intellect

nofault -adj

  1. of, relating to, or being a motor vehicle insurance plan under which someone involved in an accident is compensated usu. up to a stipulated limit for actual losses (as for property damage, medical bills, and lost wages) by that person's own insurance company regardless of who is responsible for the accident
  2. of, relating to, or being a divorce law under which neither party is held responsible for the breakup of the marriage
  3. characterized by the absence of a prevailing sense of individual responsibility (as for behavior)

nofrills ['nō-'frilz] -adj

  1. offering or providing only the essentials : not fancy, elaborate, or luxurious
    • a nofrills airline

nog ['näg] -n

  1. a strong ale formerly brewed in Norfolk, England
  2. eggnog

nog·gin ['nä-gən] -n

  1. a small mug or cup
  2. a small quantity (as a gill) of drink
  3. a person's head

nog·ging ['nä-gən, -giŋ] -n

  1. rough brick masonry used to fill in the open spaces of a wooden frame

nogo -adj

  1. being an area into which entry is forbidden or dangerous
    • nogo tourist areas

nogood ['nō-'gu̇d] -adj

  1. having no worth, virtue, use, or chance of success
    • a nogood scoundrel
  2. a no-good person or thing

nogood·nik [,nō-'gu̇d-nik] -n

  1. no-good, lowlife

Noh ['nō] -n

  1. classic Japanese dance-drama having a heroic theme, a chorus, and highly stylized action, costuming, and scenery

nohit -adj

  1. of, relating to, or being a baseball game or a part of a game in which a pitcher allows the opposition no base hits
  2. to give up no base hits to
    • nohit them for five innings

nohit·ter [,nō-'hi-tər] -n

  1. a no-hit game in baseball

noholdsbarred [,nō-,hōl(d)z-'bärd] -adj

  1. free of restrictions or hampering conventions
    • a noholdsbarred contest

nohop·er ['nō-'hō-pər] -n

  1. one that has no chance of success

no·how ['nō-,hau̇] -adv

  1. in no manner or way : not at all
    • was nohow equal to the task
  2. anyhow

noil ['nȯi(-ə)l] -n

  1. short fiber removed during the combing of a textile fiber and often separately spun into yarn

noir ['nwär] -n, adj

  1. crime fiction featuring hard-boiled cynical characters and bleak sleazy settings
  2. film noir

noise ['nȯiz] -n, adj, adv

  1. loud, confused, or senseless shouting or outcry
  2. sound
  3. one that lacks agreeable musical quality or is noticeably unpleasant
  4. any sound that is undesired or interferes with one's hearing of something
  5. an unwanted signal or a disturbance (as static or a variation of voltage) in an electronic device or instrument (as radio or television)
  6. a disturbance interfering with the operation of a usu. mechanical device or system
  7. electromagnetic radiation (as light or radio waves) that is composed of several frequencies and that involves random changes in frequency or amplitude
  8. irrelevant or meaningless data or output occurring along with desired information
  9. common talk : rumor
  10. slander
  11. something that attracts attention
    • the play...will make little noise in the world -- Brendan Gill
  12. something spoken or uttered
  13. a style of rock music that is loud, often discordant, and usu. uses electronic noise (as feedback)
  14. to talk much or loudly
  15. to make a noise
  16. to spread by rumor or report usu. used with about or abroad
    • the scandal was quickly noised about

noise·mak·er ['nȯiz-,mā-kər] -n, n or adj

  1. one that makes noise
  2. a device (as a horn or rattle) used to make noise at parties

noise pollution -n

  1. annoying or harmful noise (as of automobiles or jet airplanes) in an environment

noi·sette [nwə-'zet, nwä-] -n

  1. a small piece of lean meat

noi·some ['nȯi-səm] -adj, adv, n

  1. noxious, harmful
  2. offensive to the senses and esp. to the sense of smell
    • noisome garbage
  3. highly obnoxious or objectionable
    • noisome habits

noisy ['nȯi-zē] -adj, adv, n

  1. making noise
  2. full of or characterized by noise or clamor
    • a noisy office
  3. noticeably showy, gaudy, or bright : conspicuous

no·li me tan·ge·re [,nō-lē-(,)mē-'tan-jə-rē, -,lī-, -(,)mā-, -'täŋ-gə-,rā] -n

  1. a warning against touching or interference

nol·le pro·se·qui [,nä-lē-'prä-sə-,kwī] -n

  1. an entry on the record of a legal action denoting that the prosecutor or plaintiff will proceed no further in an action or suit either as a whole or as to some count or as to one or more of several defendants

no·lo ['nō-(,)lō] -n

  1. nolo contendere

noload ['nō-'lōd] -adj, n

  1. charging no sales commission
    • a noload mutual fund

no·lo con·ten·de·re ['nō-(,)lō-kən-'ten-də-rē] -n

  1. a plea in a criminal prosecution that without admitting guilt subjects the defendant to conviction but does not preclude denying the truth of the charges in a collateral proceeding

nolpros ['näl-'präs] -vt

  1. to discontinue by entering a nolle prosequi

no·ma ['nō-mə] -n

  1. a spreading invasive gangrene chiefly of the lining of the cheek and lips that is usu. fatal and occurs most often in persons severely debilitated by disease or profound nutritional deficiency

no·mad ['nō-,mad, Brit also 'nä-] -n, adj

  1. a member of a people who have no fixed residence but move from place to place usu. seasonally and within a well-defined territory
  2. an individual who roams about

no·mad·ic [nō-'ma-dik] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of nomads
    • a nomadic tribe
  2. roaming about from place to place aimlessly, frequently, or without a fixed pattern of movement

noman'sland ['nō-,manz-,land] -n

  1. an area of unowned, unclaimed, or uninhabited land
  2. an unoccupied area between opposing armies
  3. an area not suitable or used for occupation or habitation
    • downtown was a retailing noman'sland
  4. an anomalous, ambiguous, or indefinite area esp. of operation, application, or jurisdiction
    • the noman'sland between art and science

nom·bril ['näm-brəl] -n

  1. the center point of the lower half of an armorial escutcheon

nom de guerre [,näm-di-'ger] -n

  1. pseudonym

nom de plume [-'plüm] -n

  1. pseudonym, pen name

nome ['nōm] -n

  1. a province of ancient Egypt

no·men ['nō-mən] -n

  1. the second of the three usual names of an ancient Roman male

no·men·cla·tor ['nō-mən-,klā-tər] -n

  1. a book containing collections or lists of words
  2. one who announces the names of guests or of persons generally
  3. one who gives names to or invents names for things

no·men·cla·to·ri·al [,nō-mən-klə-'tȯr-ē-əl] -adj

  1. relating to or connected with nomenclature

no·men·cla·ture ['nō-mən-,klā-chər also nō-'men-klə-,chu̇r, -'meŋ-, -chər, -,tyu̇r, -,tu̇r] -n, adj

  1. name, designation
  2. the act or process or an instance of naming
  3. a system or set of terms or symbols esp. in a particular science, discipline, or art
  4. an international system of standardized New Latin names used in biology for kinds and groups of kinds of animals and plants

no·men con·ser·van·dum ['nō-mən-,kän(t)-sər-'van-dəm] -n

  1. a biological taxonomic name that is preserved by special sanction in exception to the usual rules

nomen du·bi·um [-'dü-bē-əm, -'dyü-] -n

  1. a taxonomic name that cannot be assigned with certainty to any taxonomic group because the description is insufficient for identification and the original specimens no longer exist

nomen nu·dum [-'nü-dəm, -'nyü-] -n

  1. a proposed taxonomic name that is invalid because the group designated is not described or illustrated sufficiently for recognition, that has no nomenclatural status, and that consequently can be used as though never previously proposed

nom·i·nal ['nä-mə-nᵊl, 'näm-nəl] -adj, adv

  1. of, relating to, or being a noun or a word or expression taking a noun construction
  2. of, relating to, or constituting a name
  3. bearing the name of a person
  4. existing or being something in name or form only
    • nominal head of his party
  5. of, being, or relating to a designated or theoretical size that may vary from the actual : approximate
    • the pipe's nominal size
  6. trifling, insignificant
    • his involvement was nominal
    • charged only nominal rent
  7. equal to the annual rate of simple interest that would obtain if interest were not compounded when in fact it is compounded and paid for periods of less than a year
  8. equal to the percentage by which a repaid loan exceeds the principal borrowed with no adjustment made for inflation
  9. being according to plan : satisfactory
    • everything was nominal during the launch

nominal -n

  1. a word or word group functioning as a noun

nom·i·nal·ism ['nä-mə-nə-,li-zəm, 'näm-nə-,li-zəm] -n, adj

  1. a theory that there are no universal essences in reality and that the mind can frame no single concept or image corresponding to any universal or general term
  2. the theory that only individuals and no abstract entities (as essences, classes, or propositions) exist

nominal value -n

  1. par

nominal wages -n pl

  1. wages measured in money as distinct from actual purchasing power

nom·i·nate ['nä-mə-,nāt] -vt, adj, n

  1. designate, name
  2. to appoint or propose for appointment to an office or place
  3. to propose as a candidate for election to office
  4. to propose for an honor
    • nominate her for player of the year
  5. to enter (a horse) in a race

nom·i·na·tion [,nä-mə-'nā-shən] -n

  1. the act, process, or an instance of nominating
  2. the state of being nominated

nom·i·na·tive ['näm-nə-tiv, 'nä-mə-; 2 & 3 are also 'nä-mə-,nā-] -adj, n

  1. marking typically the subject of a verb esp. in languages that have relatively full inflection
    • nominative case
  2. of or relating to the nominative case
    • a nominative ending
  3. nominated or appointed by nomination
  4. bearing a person's name

no·mo·gram ['nä-mə-,gram, 'nō-] -n

  1. a graphic representation that consists of several lines marked off to scale and arranged in such a way that by using a straightedge to connect known values on two lines an unknown value can be read at the point of intersection with another line

no·mo·graph [-,graf] -n, adj

  1. nomogram

no·mo·log·i·cal [,nä-mə-'lä-ji-kəl, ,nō-] -adj

  1. relating to or expressing basic physical laws or rules of reasoning
    • nomological universals

no·mo·thet·ic [-'the-tik] -adj

  1. relating to, involving, or dealing with abstract, general, or universal statements or laws

non- [(')nän also ,nən or 'nən before '-stressed syllable, ,nän also ,nən before ,-stressed or unstressed syllable; the variant with ə is also to be understood at pronounced entries, though not shown] -prefix

  1. not : other than : reverse of : absence of
    • non toxic
    • non linear
  2. of little or no consequence : unimportant : worthless
    • non issues
    • non system
  3. lacking the usual esp. positive characteristics of the thing specified
    • non celebration
    • non art

non·ad·di·tive ['nän-'a-də-tiv] -adj, n

  1. not having a numerical value equal to the sum of values for the component parts
  2. of, relating to, or being a genic effect that is not additive

non·age ['nä-nij, 'nō-] -n

  1. minority
  2. a period of youth
  3. lack of maturity

no·na·ge·nar·i·an [,nō-nə-jə-'ner-ē-ən, ,nä-] -n, adj

  1. a person whose age is in the nineties

no·na·gon ['nō-nə-,gän] -n

  1. a polygon of nine angles and nine sides

non·aligned [,nän-ə-'līnd] -adj, n

  1. not allied with other nations and esp. with either the Communist or the non-Communist blocs

non·al·le·lic [,nän-ə-'lē-lik, -'le-] -adj

  1. not behaving as alleles toward one another
    • nonallelic genes

noname ['nō-,nām] -adj, n

  1. having a name that is not readily recognized by the public
    • a noname product
    • a noname baseball team

nonA, nonB hepatitis ['nän-'ā-'nän-'bē-] -n

  1. hepatitis clinically similar to hepatitis A and hepatitis B but caused by a different virus
  2. hepatitis c

non·bank ['nän-'baŋk] -n, adj

  1. a business that is not an officially established bank but offers many similar services

non·bond·ing [-'bän-diŋ] -adj

  1. relating to, being, or occupying a molecular orbital that neither promotes nor inhibits bond formation between atoms
    • a nonbonding electron

non·book [-'bu̇k] -adj

  1. being something other than a book
  2. being a library holding (as a microfilm) that is not a book
  3. a book of little literary merit which is often a compilation (as of pictures, press clippings, or speeches)

non·busi·ness [-'biz-nəs, -nəz] -adj

  1. not related to business
  2. not related to one's primary business

non·ca·lo·ric [,nän-kə-'lȯr-ik] -adj

  1. free from or very low in calories
    • a noncaloric drink

non·can·di·date ['nän-'kan-də-,dāt, -'ka-nə-, -dət] -n

  1. a person who is not a candidate
  2. one who has refused to be a candidate for a particular political office

nonce ['nän(t)s] -n

  1. the one, particular, or present occasion, purpose, or use
    • for the nonce
  2. the time being
  3. occurring, used, or made only once or for a special occasion
    • a nonce word

non·cha·lance [,nän-shə-'län(t)s; 'nän-shə-,län(t)s, -lən(t)s] -n

  1. the quality or state of being nonchalant

non·cha·lant [-'länt, -,länt, -lənt] -adj, adv

  1. having an air of easy unconcern or indifference

non·chro·mo·som·al [,nän-,krō-mə-'sō-məl] -adj

  1. not situated on a chromosome
  2. not involving chromosomes

non·cod·ing [(')nän-'kō-diŋ] -adj

  1. not specifying the genetic code
    • a noncoding DNA sequence

non·com ['nän-,käm] -n

  1. noncommissioned officer

non·com·bat·ant [,nän-kəm-'ba-tᵊnt also 'nän-'käm-bə-tənt] -n, adj

  1. : one that does not engage in combat: as
  2. a member (as a chaplain) of the armed forces whose duties do not include fighting
  3. civilian

non·com·e·do·gen·ic [(')nän-,kä-mə-dō-'je-nik] -adj

  1. not tending to clog pores (as by the formation of blackheads)
    • a noncomedogenic cosmetic

non·com·mis·sioned officer [,nän-kə-'mi-shənd-] -n

  1. a subordinate officer (as a sergeant) in the army, air force, or marine corps appointed from among enlisted personnel

non·com·mit·tal [-kə-'mi-tᵊl] -adj, adv

  1. giving no clear indication of attitude or feeling
    • a noncommittal reply
  2. having no clear or distinctive character

non com·pos men·tis [,nän-,käm-pəs-'men-təs, ,nōn-] -adj

  1. not of sound mind

non·con·cur [,nän-kən-'kər] -vi, n

  1. to refuse or fail to concur

non·con·duc·tor [-kən-'dək-tər] -n

  1. a substance that conducts heat, electricity, or sound only in very small degree

non·con·form [-kən-'fȯrm] -vi, n

  1. to fail to conform

non·con·for·mance [-'fȯr-mən(t)s] -n

  1. failure to conform

non·con·form·ism [-'fȯr-,mi-zəm] -n

  1. nonconformity

non·con·form·ist [-'fȯr-mist] -n, adj

  1. a person who does not conform to an established church
  2. one who does not conform to the Church of England
  3. a person who does not conform to a generally accepted pattern of thought or action

non·con·for·mi·ty [-'fȯr-mə-tē] -n

  1. failure or refusal to conform to an established church
  2. the movement or principles of English Protestant dissent
  3. the body of English Nonconformists
  4. refusal to conform to an established or conventional creed, rule, or practice
  5. absence of agreement or correspondence

non·co·op·er·a·tion [,nän-kō-,ä-pə-'rā-shən] -n

  1. failure or refusal to cooperate
  2. refusal through civil disobedience of a people to cooperate with the government of a country

non·co·op·er·a·tive [-'ä-p(ə-)rə-tiv, -pə-,rā-] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characterized by noncooperation

non·cred·it ['nän-'kre-dət] -adj

  1. not offering credit toward a degree
    • noncredit courses

non·cross·over [-'krȯ-,sō-vər] -adj

  1. having or being chromosomes that have not participated in genetic crossing-over

non·cus·to·di·al [-kə-'stō-dē-əl] -adj

  1. of or being a parent who does not have sole custody of a child or who has custody a smaller portion of the time

non·dairy [-'der-ē, 'nän-,] -adj

  1. containing no milk or milk products
    • nondairy whipped topping

non·de·duct·ible [,nän-di-'dək-tə-bəl] -adj, n

  1. not deductible
  2. not deductible for income tax purposes
    • a nondeductible contribution

non·de·fense [,nän-di-'fen(t)s] -adj

  1. not used or intended for or associated with the military
    • nondefense spending

non·de·script [,nän-di-'skript] -adj, n

  1. belonging or appearing to belong to no particular class or kind : not easily described
  2. lacking distinctive or interesting qualities : dull, drab

non·de·struc·tive [-di-'strək-tiv] -adj, adv, n

  1. not destructive
  2. not causing destruction of material being investigated or treated
    • nondestructive testing of metal

non·dia·paus·ing [,nän-,dī-ə-'pȯ-ziŋ] -adj

  1. not having a diapause
  2. not being in a state of diapause

non·di·rec·tive [,nän-də-'rek-tiv, -(,)dī-] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or being psychotherapy, counseling, or interviewing in which the counselor refrains from interpretation or explanation but encourages the client (as by repeating phrases) to talk freely

non·dis·junc·tion [,nän-dis-'jəŋ(k)-shən] -n, adj

  1. failure of homologous chromosomes or sister chromatids to separate subsequent to metaphase in meiosis or mitosis so that one daughter cell has both and the other neither of the chromosomes

non·dis·tinc·tive [-di-'stiŋ(k)-tiv] -adj

  1. having no signaling value

non·di·vid·ing [,nän-də-'vī-diŋ] -adj

  1. not undergoing cell division

non·dor·mant ['nän-'dȯr-mənt] -adj

  1. being in such a condition that germination is possible
    • nondormant seeds
  2. being in active vegetative growth
    • nondormant plants

non·drink·er [-'driŋ-kər] -n, adj

  1. a person who abstains from alcoholic beverages

non·dry·ing oil [-'drī-iŋ-] -n

  1. a highly saturated oil (as olive oil) that is unable to solidify when exposed in a thin film to air

none ['nən] -pron, sing or pl in constr

  1. not any
  2. not one : nobody
  3. not any such thing or person
  4. no part : nothing
  5. not any : no
  6. by no means : not at all
    • none too soon to begin
  7. in no way : to no extent
    • none the worse for wear
  8. the fifth of the canonical hours

non·eco·nom·ic [,nän-,e-kə-'nä-mik, -,ē-kə-] -adj

  1. not economic
  2. having no economic importance or implication

non·elec·tro·lyte [,nän-ə-'lek-trə-,līt] -n

  1. a substance that does not readily ionize when dissolved or melted and is a poor conductor of electricity

non·en·ti·ty [-'en-tə-tē, -'e-nə-] -n

  1. something that does not exist or exists only in the imagination
  2. nonexistence
  3. a person or thing of little consequence or significance

nones ['nōnz] -n pl but sing or pl in constr

  1. the ninth day before the ides according to ancient Roman reckoning
  2. none

non·es·sen·tial [,nän-i-'sen(t)-shəl] -adj, n

  1. not essential
  2. being a substance synthesized by the body in sufficient quantity to satisfy dietary needs
    • nonessential amino acids

none·such ['nən-,səch] -n, adj

  1. a person or thing without an equal

no·net [nō-'net] -n

  1. a combination of nine instruments or voices
  2. a musical composition for such a combination

none·the·less [,nən-thə-'les] -adv

  1. nevertheless

noneu·clid·e·an [,nän-yü-'kli-dē-ən] -adj

  1. not assuming or in accordance with all the postulates of Euclid's Elements
    • noneuclidean geometry

non·event ['nän-i-,vent, ,nän-i-'] -n

  1. an expected event that fails to take place or to satisfy expectations
  2. an often highly publicized event of little intrinsic interest or significance
  3. an occurrence that is officially ignored

non·ex·is·tence [,nän-ig-'zis-tən(t)s] -n, adj

  1. absence of existence : the negation of being

non·fat ['nän-'fat] -adj

  1. lacking fat solids : having fat solids removed
    • nonfat milk

non·fea·sance ['nän-'fē-zᵊn(t)s] -n

  1. failure to act
  2. failure to do what ought to be done

non·fer·rous [-'fer-əs] -adj

  1. not containing, including, or relating to iron
  2. of or relating to metals other than iron

non·fic·tion [-'fik-shən] -n, adj

  1. literature or cinema that is not fictional

non·fig·u·ra·tive ['nän-'fi-gyə-rə-tiv, -'fi-gə-] -adj

  1. nonobjective

non·flam·ma·ble [-'fla-mə-bəl] -adj, n

  1. not flammable
  2. not easily ignited and not burning rapidly if ignited

non·flow·er·ing ['nän-'flau̇(-ə)r-iŋ] -adj

  1. producing no flowers
  2. lacking a flowering stage in the life cycle

non·flu·en·cy [-'flü-ən(t)-sē] -n

  1. lack of fluency
  2. an instance of nonfluency

non·gon·o·coc·cal [,nän-,gä-nə-'kä-kəl] -adj

  1. not caused by a gonococcus
    • sexually transmitted nongonococcal urethritis

non gra·ta [,nän-'gra-tə, -'grä-] -adj

  1. not approved : unwelcome

non·green ['nän-'grēn] -adj

  1. not green
  2. containing no chlorophyll
    • nongreen saprophytes

non·he·ro ['nän-'hē-(,)rō, -'hir-(,)ō] -n

  1. antihero

non·his·tone [-'his-,tōn] -adj

  1. relating to or being any of the eukaryotic proteins (as DNA polymerase) that form complexes with DNA but are not considered histones

nonHodg·kin's lymphoma ['nän-'häj-kənz-] -n

  1. any of the numerous malignant lymphomas (as Burkitt's lymphoma) that are not classified as Hodgkin's disease

non·iden·ti·cal [,nän-(,)ī-'den-ti-kəl, -ə-'den-] -adj

  1. different
  2. fraternal
    • nonidentical twins

non·in·duc·tive [,nän-in-'dək-tiv] -adj

  1. not inductive
  2. having negligible inductance

noninsulindependent diabetes -n

  1. type 2 diabetes

noninsulindependent diabetes mellitus -n

  1. type 2 diabetes abbr. NIDDM

non·in·ter·laced [,nän-,in-tər-'lāst] -adj

  1. not interlaced
  2. of, relating to, or using a method of video scanning (as for a television or computer screen) in which the horizontal lines of each frame are drawn consecutively in a single pass

non·in·ter·ven·tion [-,in-tər-'ven(t)-shən] -n, n or adj

  1. the state or policy of not intervening
    • nonintervention in the affairs of other countries

non·in·va·sive [-in-'vā-siv, -ziv] -adj, adv

  1. not tending to spread
  2. not tending to infiltrate and destroy healthy tissue
    • noninvasive cancer of the bladder
  3. not being or involving an invasive medical procedure
    • noninvasive imaging techniques

non·in·volve·ment [-in-'välv-mənt, -'vȯlv- also -'väv-, -'vȯv-] -n, adj

  1. absence of involvement or emotional attachment

non·ion·ic [-(,)ī-'ä-nik] -adj

  1. not ionic
  2. not dependent on a surface-active anion for effect
    • nonionic surfactants

non·is·sue ['nän-'i-(,)shü] -n

  1. an issue of little importance, validity, or concern

non·join·der ['nän-'jȯin-dər] -n

  1. failure to include a necessary party to a suit at law

non·judg·men·tal [,nän-,jəj-'men-tᵊl] -adj, adv

  1. avoiding judgments based on one's personal and esp. moral standards

non·jur·ing ['nän-'ju̇r-iŋ] -adj

  1. not swearing allegiance used esp. of a member of a party in Great Britain that would not swear allegiance to William and Mary or to their successors

non·ju·ror [-'ju̇r-ər, -'ju̇r-,ȯr] -n

  1. a person refusing to take an oath esp. of allegiance, supremacy, or abjuration
  2. one of the beneficed clergy in England and Scotland refusing to take an oath of allegiance to William and Mary or to their successors after the revolution of 1688

non·lit·er·ate [-'li-t(ə-)rət] -adj, n

  1. not literate
  2. having no written language

non·met·al [-'me-tᵊl] -n

  1. a chemical element (as boron, carbon, or nitrogen) that lacks the characteristics of a metal

non·me·tal·lic [,nän-mə-'ta-lik] -adj

  1. not metallic
  2. of, relating to, or being a nonmetal

non·mor·al ['nän-'mȯr-əl, -'mär-] -adj

  1. not falling into or existing in the sphere of morals or ethics

non·neg·a·tive [-'ne-gə-tiv] -adj

  1. : not negative: as
  2. being either positive or zero
  3. taking on nonnegative values
    • a nonnegative function

non·nu·cle·ar [-'nü-klē-ər, -'nyü-, ÷-kyə-lər] -adj

  1. : not nuclear: as
  2. being a weapon whose destructive power is not derived from a nuclear reaction
  3. not operated by, using, or produced by nuclear energy
  4. not using or involving nuclear weapons
  5. not having nuclear weapons
    • a nonnuclear country

nono ['nō-,nō] -n

  1. something unacceptable or forbidden
  2. no-hitter

non·ob·jec·tive [,nän-əb-'jek-tiv] -adj, n

  1. not objective
  2. representing or intended to represent no natural or actual object, figure, or scene
    • nonobjective art

non ob·stan·te [,nän-əb-'stan-tē, ,nōn-] -prep

  1. notwithstanding

nonoil ['nän-'ȯi(-ə)l] -adj

  1. not relating to, containing, or derived from oil
  2. being a net importer of petroleum or petroleum products
    • nonoil nations

nononsense -adj

  1. tolerating no nonsense : serious, businesslike
    • a nononsense manager

non·or·gas·mic [,nän-ȯr-'gaz-mik] -adj

  1. not capable of experiencing orgasm

no·nox·y·nol9 [nä-'näk-si-,nȯl-'nīn, nə-, -,nōl-] -n

  1. a spermicide used in contraceptive products

non·para·met·ric [-,pa-rə-'me-trik] -adj

  1. not involving the estimation of parameters of a statistical function
    • nonparametric statistical tests

non·pa·reil [,nän-pə-'rel] -adj

  1. having no equal

nonpareil -n

  1. an individual of unequaled excellence : paragon
  2. a small flat disk of chocolate covered with white sugar pellets
  3. sugar in small pellets of various colors

non·par·ti·san ['nän-'pär-tə-zən, -sən] -adj, n

  1. not partisan
  2. free from party affiliation, bias, or designation
    • nonpartisan ballot
    • a nonpartisan board

non·pas·ser·ine [-'pa-sə-,rīn] -adj

  1. not passerine
  2. of, relating to, or being any of various arboreal birds (as pigeons, woodpeckers, hummingbirds, and kingfishers) that are not passerines

non·patho·gen·ic [,nän-,pa-thə-'je-nik] -adj

  1. not capable of inducing disease

non·peak ['nän-'pēk] -adj

  1. off-peak

non·per·form·ing [,nän-pə(r)-'fȯr-miŋ] -adj

  1. not producing the expected return
    • nonperforming loans
    • nonperforming assets

non·per·sis·tent [-pər-'sis-tənt, -'zis-] -adj

  1. : not persistent: as
  2. decomposed rapidly by environmental action
    • nonpersistent insecticides
  3. capable of being transmitted by a vector for only a relatively short time
    • nonpersistent viruses

non·per·son ['nän-'pər-sᵊn] -n

  1. : a person who is regarded as nonexistent: as
  2. unperson
  3. one having no social or legal status

non pla·cet ['nän-'plā-sət, 'nōn-] -n

  1. a negative vote

non·plus [,nän-'pləs] -n

  1. a state of bafflement or perplexity : quandary

nonplus [-'pləst] -vt

  1. to cause to be at a loss as to what to say, think, or do : perplex

non·point ['nän-'pȯint] -adj

  1. being a source of pollution (as runoff from farmland) that is not a point source
  2. being pollution or a pollutant that does not arise from a single indentifiable source

non·po·lar [,nän-'pō-lər] -adj

  1. not polar
  2. consisting of molecules not having a dipole
    • a nonpolar solvent

non pos·su·mus ['nän-'pä-sə-məs, 'nōn-] -n

  1. a statement expressing inability to do something

non·pre·scrip·tion [,nän-pri-'skrip-shən] -adj

  1. capable of being bought without a doctor's prescription
    • nonprescription drugs

non·pro·duc·tive [-prə-'dək-tiv] -adj, n

  1. : not productive: as
  2. failing to produce or yield : unproductive
    • a nonproductive oil well
  3. not directly concerned with production
    • the nonproductive labor of clerks and inspectors
  4. dry

non·prof·it ['nän-'prä-fət] -adj, n

  1. not conducted or maintained for the purpose of making a profit
    • a nonprofit organization

non·pro·lif·er·a·tion [,nän-prə-,li-fə-'rā-shən] -adj, n

  1. providing for the stoppage of proliferation (as of nuclear arms)
    • nonproliferation treaty

non·pros ['nän-'präs] -vt

  1. to enter a non prosequitur against

non pro·se·qui·tur [,nän-prə-'se-kwə-tər, ,nōn-] -n

  1. a judgment entered against a plaintiff for failure to appear to prosecute a suit

non·pro·tein ['nän-'prō-,tēn, -'prō-tē-ən] -adj

  1. not being or derived from protein
    • the nonprotein part of an enzyme
    • nonprotein nitrogen

non·read·er [-'rē-dər] -n, adj

  1. one who does not or cannot read
  2. a child who is slow in learning to read

non·re·com·bi·nant [,nän-(,)rē-'käm-bə-nənt] -adj, n

  1. not exhibiting the results of genetic recombination

non·re·course ['nän-'rē-,kȯrs, -ri-'] -adj

  1. being or based on an agreement in which the lender has no right of recourse to the borrower's assets beyond stated limits
    • a nonrecourse note
    • a nonrecourse loan

non·re·cur·rent [,nän-ri-'kər-ənt, -'kə-rənt] -adj

  1. not recurring

non·re·cur·ring [-ri-'kər-iŋ, -'kə-riŋ] -adj

  1. nonrecurrent
  2. unlikely to happen again used of financial transactions that affect a profit and loss statement abnormally

non·re·fund·able [-ri-'fən-də-bəl] -adj

  1. not subject to refunding or being refunded
    • a nonrefundable bond
    • a nonrefundable fee

non·rel·a·tiv·is·tic [-,re-lə-ti-'vis-tik] -adj, adv

  1. not based on or involving the theory of relativity
    • nonrelativistic equations
    • nonrelativistic kinematics
  2. of, relating to, or being a body moving at less than a relativistic velocity

non·rep·re·sen·ta·tion·al [-,re-pri-,zen-'tā-shnəl, -zən-, -shə-nᵊl] -adj, n

  1. nonobjective
    • a nonrepresentational sculpture

non·res·i·dence ['nän-'re-zə-dən(t)s, -'rez-dən(t)s, -,den(t)s] -n

  1. the state or fact of being nonresident

non·res·i·den·cy [-'re-zə-dən(t)-sē, -'rez-dən(t)-, -,den(t)-] -n

  1. nonresidence

non·res·i·dent [-'re-zə-dənt, -'rez-dənt, -,dent] -adj, n

  1. not residing in a particular place

non·re·sis·tance [,nän-ri-'zis-tən(t)s] -n

  1. the principles or practice of passive submission to constituted authority even when unjust or oppressive
  2. the principle or practice of not resisting violence by force

non·re·sis·tant [-tənt] -adj, n

  1. not resistant
  2. susceptible to the effects of a deleterious agent (as an insecticide, a pathogen, or an extreme environmental condition)

non·re·stric·tive [-ri-'strik-tiv] -adj

  1. not restrictive
  2. not limiting the reference of a modified word or phrase

nonrestrictive clause -n

  1. a descriptive clause that is not essential to the definiteness of the meaning of the word it modifies (as who is retiredin my father, who is retired, does volunteer work)

non·re·turn·able [-ri-'tər-nə-bəl] -adj, n

  1. not returnable
  2. not returnable to a dealer in exchange for a deposit
    • nonreturnable bottles

non·sched·uled [-'ske-(,)jüld, -jəld] -adj

  1. licensed to transport by air without a regular schedule
    • nonscheduled airlines

non·sci·ence [-'sī-ən(t)s] -n

  1. something (as a discipline) that is not a science

nonscience -adj

  1. of or relating to fields other than science

non·se·cre·tor [,nän-si-'krē-tər] -n

  1. an individual of blood group A, B, or AB who does not secrete the antigens characteristic of these blood groups in bodily fluids (as saliva)

non·sec·tar·i·an [-(,)sek-'ter-ē-ən] -adj

  1. not having a sectarian character : not affiliated with or restricted to a particular religious group

non·self ['nän-'self, Southern also -'sef] -n

  1. material that is foreign to the body of an organism

non·sense ['nän-,sen(t)s, 'nän(t)-sən(t)s] -n, adj, adv

  1. words or language having no meaning or conveying no intelligible ideas
  2. language, conduct, or an idea that is absurd or contrary to good sense
  3. an instance of absurd action
  4. things of no importance or value : trifles
  5. affected or impudent conduct
    • took no nonsense from subordinates
  6. genetic information consisting of one or more codons that do not code for any amino acid and usu. cause termination of the molecular chain in protein synthesis

nonsense -adj

  1. consisting of an arbitrary grouping of speech sounds or symbols
    • shrg-thi-mpth is a nonsense word
    • a nonsense syllable
  2. consisting of one or more codons that are genetic nonsense

nonsense verse -n

  1. humorous or whimsical verse that features absurd characters and actions and often contains evocative but meaningless nonce words

non se·qui·tur ['nän-'se-kwə-tər also -,tu̇r] -n

  1. an inference that does not follow from the premises
  2. a fallacy resulting from a simple conversion of a universal affirmative proposition or from the transposition of a condition and its consequent
  3. a statement (as a response) that does not follow logically from or is not clearly related to anything previously said

non·sig·nif·i·cant [,nän-sig-'ni-fi-kənt] -adj, adv

  1. : not significant: as
  2. insignificant
  3. meaningless
  4. having or yielding a value lying within limits between which variation is attributed to chance
    • a nonsignificant statistical test

non·skid [-'skid] -adj

  1. designed or equipped to prevent skidding

non·slip [-'slip] -adj

  1. designed to reduce or prevent slipping

non·so·cial [-'sō-shəl] -adj

  1. not socially oriented : lacking a social component

non·sport·ing [-'spȯr-tiŋ] -adj

  1. lacking the qualities characteristic of a hunting dog

non·stan·dard [-'stan-dərd] -adj

  1. not standard
  2. not conforming in pronunciation, grammatical construction, idiom, or word choice to the usage generally characteristic of educated native speakers of a language

non·start·er [-'stär-tər] -n

  1. one that does not start
  2. someone or something that is not productive or effective
    • his son has been, in politics a nonstarter -- Anthony Lejeune

non·ste·roi·dal [,nän-stə-'rȯi-dᵊl] -adj, n

  1. of, relating to, or being a compound and esp. a drug that is not a steroid
    • a nonsteroidal painkiller

non·stick ['nän-'stik] -adj

  1. allowing easy removal of cooked food particles
    • a nonstick coating in a frying pan
  2. having a nonstick surface
    • a nonstick frying pan

non·stop ['nän-'stäp] -adj, adv

  1. done, made, or held without a stop : not easing or letting up

nonstop -n

  1. a nonstop airplane flight

non·suit ['nän-'süt] -n, vt

  1. a judgment against a plaintiff for failure to prosecute a case or inability to establish a prima facie case

non·sup·port [,nän-sə-'pȯrt] -n

  1. failure to support
  2. failure (as of a parent) to honor a statutory or contractual obligation to provide maintenance

non·sys·tem ['nän-'sis-təm] -n

  1. a system that lacks effective organization

non·tar·get [-'tär-gət] -adj

  1. not being the intended object of action by a particular agent
    • effect of insecticides on nontarget organisms

non·ter·mi·nat·ing [-'tər-mə-,nā-tiŋ] -adj

  1. not terminating or ending
  2. being a decimal for which there is no place to the right of the decimal point such that all places farther to the right contain the entry 0
    • gives the nonterminating decimal .33333...

non·ther·mal [-'thər-məl] -adj

  1. not produced by heat
  2. of, relating to, or being radiation having a spectrum that is not the spectrum of a blackbody

non·threat·en·ing [-'thret-niŋ, -'thre-tᵊn-iŋ] -adj

  1. not constituting a threat
    • a nonthreatening illness
  2. not likely to cause anxiety
    • a nonthreatening environment
  3. innocuous

non·ti·tle [-'tī-tᵊl] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or being an athletic contest in which a title is not at stake

non trop·po ['nän-'trȯ-(,)pō, 'nōn-] -adv or adj

  1. without excess used to qualify a direction in music

nonU ['nän-'yü] -adj

  1. not characteristic of the upper classes

non·union [-'yün-yən] -adj

  1. not belonging to or connected with a trade union
    • nonunion carpenters
  2. not recognizing or favoring trade unions or their members
  3. not produced or worked on by members of a trade union
    • nonunion lettuce

non·use ['nän-'yüs] -n

  1. failure to use
    • nonuse of available material
  2. the fact or condition of not being used

non·us·er [-'yü-zər] -n

  1. one who does not make use of something (as an available public facility or a harmful drug)

non·van·ish·ing [-'va-ni-shiŋ] -adj

  1. not zero or becoming zero

non·vec·tor [-'vek-tər] -n

  1. an organism (as an insect) that does not transmit a particular pathogen (as a virus)

non·ver·bal [-'vər-bəl] -adj, adv

  1. : not verbal: as
  2. being other than verbal
    • nonverbal factors
  3. involving minimal use of language
    • nonverbal tests
  4. ranking low in verbal skill
    • a nonverbal child

non·vin·tage [-'vin-tij] -adj

  1. undated and usu. blended to approximate a standard
    • a nonvintage wine

non·vi·o·lence [-'vī-ə-lən(t)s] -n

  1. abstention from violence as a matter of principle
  2. the principle of such abstention
  3. the quality or state of being nonviolent : avoidance of violence
  4. nonviolent demonstrations for the purpose of securing political ends

non·vi·o·lent [-lənt] -adj, adv

  1. abstaining or free from violence

non·vol·a·tile [-'vä-lə-tᵊl] -adj

  1. : not volatile: as
  2. not vaporizing readily
    • a nonvolatile solvent
  3. retaining data when power is shut off

nonWest·ern [-'wes-tərn] -adj

  1. not being part of the western tradition
    • nonWestern countries
  2. of or relating to non-Western societies
    • nonWestern values

non·white [-'hwīt, -'wīt] -n, adj

  1. a person whose features and esp. whose skin color are distinctively different from those of peoples of northwestern Europe
  2. one who has black African ancestors

non·word [-'wərd] -n

  1. a word that has no meaning, is not known to exist, or is disapproved

non·wo·ven [-'wō-vən] -adj, n

  1. made of fibers held together by interlocking or bonding (as by chemical or thermal means) : not woven, knitted, or felted
    • nonwoven fabric
  2. made of nonwoven fabric
    • a nonwoven dress

non·ze·ro [-'zir-(,)ō] -adj

  1. being, having, or involving a value other than zero
  2. having phonetic content
    • nonzero affixes

noo·dle ['nü-dᵊl] -n

  1. a stupid person : simpleton
  2. head, noggin

noodle -n

  1. a food paste made usu. with egg and shaped typically in ribbon form
  2. to improvise on an instrument in an informal or desultory manner

noog·ie ['nu̇-gē] -n

  1. the act of rubbing one's knuckles on a person's head so as to produce a mildly painful sensation

nook ['nu̇k] -n

  1. a right-angled corner
  2. an interior angle formed by two meeting walls
  3. a secluded or sheltered place or part
    • searched every nook and cranny
  4. a small often recessed section of a larger room
    • a breakfast nook

nooky ['nu̇-kē] -n

  1. the female partner in sexual intercourse
  2. sexual intercourse

noon ['nün] -n

  1. midday
  2. 12 o'clock at midday
  3. midnight used chiefly in the phrase noon of night
  4. the highest point

noon·day [-,dā] -n

  1. midday

no one -pron

  1. no person : nobody

noon·ing ['nü-niŋ, -nən] -n

  1. a meal eaten at noon
  2. a period at noon for eating or resting

noon·tide ['nün-,tīd] -n

  1. noontime
  2. the culminating point

noon·time [-,tīm] -n

  1. the time of noon : midday

noose ['nüs, Brit also 'nüz] -n

  1. a loop with a slipknot that binds closer the more it is drawn
  2. something that snares like a noose
  3. to secure by a noose
  4. to make a noose in or of

noo·sphere ['nō-ə-,sfir] -n

  1. the sphere of human consciousness and mental activity esp. in regard to its influence on the biosphere and in relation to evolution

Noot·ka ['nu̇t-kə] -n

  1. a member of a group of American Indian peoples inhabiting the west coast of Vancouver Island
  2. the Wakashan language of the Nootka people

no·ot·ro·pic [,nō-ə-'trō-pik] -n, adj

  1. a substance that enhances cognition and memory and facilitates learning

no·pal [nō-'päl, -'pal; 'nō-pəl] -n

  1. any of a genus ( Nopalea) of cacti of Mexico and Central America that differ from the prickly pears in having erect petals and scarlet flowers with the stamens much longer than the petals
  2. prickly pear
  3. a fleshy young tender stem segment of the prickly pear cactus (esp. Opuntia ficus-indica) or the nopal cactus used as food

no·pa·li·to [nō-pä-'lē-tō] -n

  1. nopal

nopar -adj

  1. having no nominal value
    • nopar stocks

nope ['nōp, or with glottal stop instead of p] -adv

  1. no

nor [nər, 'nȯr, Southern also 'när] -conj

  1. used as a function word to introduce the second or last member or the second and each following member of a series of items each of which is negated
    • neither here nor there
    • not done by you nor me nor anyone
  2. used as a function word to introduce and negate a following clause or phrase
  3. neither
  4. than

nor- -comb form

  1. homologue containing one less methyl group
    • nor epinephrine

NOR ['nȯr] -n

  1. a computer logic circuit that produces an output that is the inverse of that of an OR circuit

NORAD -abbr

  1. North American Air Defense Command

nor·adren·a·line [,nȯr-ə-'dre-nᵊl-ən] -n

  1. norepinephrine

nor·ad·ren·er·gic [,nȯr-,a-drə-'nər-jik] -adj

  1. liberating, activated by, or involving norepinephrine in the transmission of nerve impulses
    • noradrenergic nerve endings
    • noradrenergic nerve fibers

Nor·dic ['nȯr-dik] -adj

  1. of or relating to the Germanic peoples of northern Europe and esp. of Scandinavia
  2. of or relating to a group or physical type of the Caucasian race characterized by tall stature, long head, light skin and hair, and blue eyes
  3. of or relating to competitive ski events involving cross-country racing, ski jumping, or biathlon
  4. of, relating to, or being cross-country skiing

Nordic -n

  1. a native of northern Europe
  2. a person of Nordic physical type
  3. a member of the peoples of Scandinavia

nor'easter [nȯrth-'ē-stər, nȯr-'ē-] -n

(variant of northeaster)

  1. a strong northeast wind
  2. a storm with northeast winds

nor·epi·neph·rine ['nȯr-,e-pə-'ne-frən] -n

  1. a monoamine C 8H 11NO 3that is a neurotransmitter in postganglionic neurons of the sympathetic nervous system and in some parts of the central nervous system, is a vasopressor hormone of the adrenal medulla, and is a precursor of epinephrine in its major biosynthetic pathway

nor·eth·in·drone [,nȯr-'e-thən-,drōn] -n

  1. a synthetic progestational hormone C 20H 26O 2used in birth control pills often in the form of its acetate

Nor·folk Island pine ['nȯr-fək-, -,fȯk-] -n

  1. an evergreen tree ( Araucaria heterophyllasyn. A. excelsa) of the araucaria family that is native to Australia and Norfolk Island and that is often grown as a houseplant called also Norfolk pine

Norfolk jacket -n

  1. a loose-fitting belted single-breasted jacket with box pleats

Norfolk terrier -n

  1. any of a breed of dogs developed in England and resembling the Norwich terrier but having folded-over ears

no·ri ['nō-rē, 'nȯr-ē] -n

  1. dried laver seaweed pressed into thin sheets and used esp. as a seasoning or as a wrapper for sushi

nor·land ['nȯr-lənd] -n

  1. northland

norm ['nȯrm] -n

  1. an authoritative standard : model
  2. a principle of right action binding upon the members of a group and serving to guide, control, or regulate proper and acceptable behavior
  3. : average: as
  4. a set standard of development or achievement usu. derived from the average or median achievement of a large group
  5. a pattern or trait taken to be typical in the behavior of a social group
  6. a widespread or usual practice, procedure, or custom
    • standing ovations became the norm
  7. a real-valued nonnegative function defined on a vector space with value analogous to length and satisfying the conditions that the function is zero if and only if the vector is zero, the function of the product of a scalar and a vector is equal to the product of the absolute value of the scalar and the function of the vector, and the function of the sum of two vectors is less than or equal to the sum of the functions of the two vectors
  8. the square root of the sum of the squares of the absolute values of the elements of a matrix or of the components of a vector
  9. the greatest distance between two successive points of a set of points that partition an interval into smaller intervals

nor·mal ['nȯr-məl] -adj, n, adv

  1. perpendicular
  2. perpendicular to a tangent at a point of tangency
  3. according with, constituting, or not deviating from a norm, rule, or principle
  4. conforming to a type, standard, or regular pattern
  5. occurring naturally
    • normal immunity
  6. of, relating to, or characterized by average intelligence or development
  7. free from mental disorder : sane
  8. having a concentration of one gram equivalent of solute per liter
  9. containing neither basic hydroxyl nor acid hydrogen
    • normal silver phosphate
  10. not associated
    • normal molecules
  11. having a straight-chain structure
    • normal butyl alcohol
  12. having the property that every coset produced by operating on the left by a given element is equal to the coset produced by operating on the right by the same element
  13. relating to, involving, or being a normal curve or normal distribution
    • normal approximation to the binomial distribution
  14. having the property of commutativity under multiplication by the transpose of the matrix each of whose elements is a conjugate complex number with respect to the corresponding element of the given matrix

normal -n

  1. a normal line
  2. the portion of a normal line to a plane curve between the curve and the x-axis
  3. one that is normal
  4. a form or state regarded as the norm : standard

normal curve -n

  1. the symmetrical bell-shaped curve of a normal distribution

nor·mal·cy ['nȯr-məl-sē] -n

  1. the state or fact of being normal

normal distribution -n

  1. a probability density function that approximates the distribution of many random variables (as the proportion of outcomes of a particular sort in a large number of independent repetitions of an experiment in which the probabilities remain constant from trial to trial) and that has the formwhere is the mean and is the standard deviation

nor·mal·ise ['nȯr-mə-,līz] -vt, adj, n

(variant of normalize)

  1. to make conform to or reduce to a norm or standard
  2. to make normal (as by a transformation of variables)
  3. to bring or restore (as relations between countries) to a normal condition

nor·mal·ize ['nȯr-mə-,līz] -vt, adj, n

  1. to make conform to or reduce to a norm or standard
  2. to make normal (as by a transformation of variables)
  3. to bring or restore (as relations between countries) to a normal condition

nor·mal·iz·er ['nȯr-mə-,lī-zər] -n

  1. one that normalizes
  2. a subgroup consisting of those elements of a group for which the group operation with regard to a given element is commutative
  3. the set of elements of a group for which the group operation with regard to every element of a given subgroup is commutative

normal school -n

  1. a usu. 2-year school for training chiefly elementary teachers

Nor·man ['nȯr-mən] -n, adj

  1. : a native or inhabitant of Normandy:
  2. one of the Scandinavian conquerors of Normandy in the 10th century
  3. one of the Norman-French conquerors of England in 1066
  4. norman-french

Norman architecture -n

  1. a Romanesque style first appearing in and near Normandy about a.d.950
  2. architecture resembling or imitating this style

nor·mande [nȯr-'mand] -adj

  1. prepared with any of several foods traditionally associated with Normandy (as cream, apples, or cider)

NormanFrench -n

  1. the French language of the medieval Normans
  2. the modern dialect of Normandy

nor·ma·tive ['nȯr-mə-tiv] -adj, adv, n

  1. of, relating to, or determining norms or standards
    • normative tests
  2. conforming to or based on norms
    • normative behavior
    • normative judgments
  3. prescribing norms
    • normative rules of ethics
    • normative grammar

normed ['nȯrmd] -adj

  1. being a mathematical entity upon which a norm is defined
    • a normed vector space

nor·mo·ten·sive [,nȯr-mō-'ten(t)-siv] -adj, n

  1. having normal blood pressure

nor·mo·ther·mia [-'thər-mē-ə] -n, adj

  1. normal body temperature

Norn ['nȯrn] -n

  1. any of the three Norse goddesses of fate

nor·o·virus ['nȯr-ə-,vī-rəs] -n

  1. any of a genus ( Norovirusof the family Caliciviridae) of small round single-stranded RNA viruses
  2. norwalk virus

Norse ['nȯrs] -n

  1. norwegian
  2. any of the western Scandinavian dialects or languages
  3. the Scandinavian group of Germanic languages
  4. scandinavians
  5. norwegians
  6. of or relating to ancient Scandinavia or the language of its inhabitants
  7. norwegian

Norse·man ['nȯrs-mən] -n

  1. any of the ancient Scandinavians

north ['nȯrth] -adv

  1. to, toward, or in the north
  2. situated toward or at the north
    • the north entrance
  3. coming from the north
    • a north wind
  4. the direction of the north terrestrial pole : the direction to the left of one facing east
  5. the compass point directly opposite to south
  6. regions or countries lying to the north of a specified or implied point of orientation
  7. the industrially and economically developed nations of the world
  8. the one of four positions at 90-degree intervals that lies to the north or at the top of a diagram
  9. a person occupying this position in the course of a specified activity (as the game of bridge)

Northants -abbr

  1. Northamptonshire

north·bound ['nȯrth-,bau̇nd] -adj

  1. traveling or headed north

north by east

  1. a compass point that is one point east of due north : N1115E

north by west

  1. a compass point that is one point west of due north : N1115W

north·east [nȯrth-'ēst, naut nȯr-'ēst] -adv

  1. to, toward, or in the northeast

northeast -adj

  1. coming from the northeast
    • a northeast wind
  2. situated toward or at the northeast
    • the northeast corner
  3. the general direction between north and east
  4. the point midway between the north and east compass points
  5. regions or countries lying to the northeast of a specified or implied point of orientation

northeast by east

  1. a compass point that is one point east of due northeast : N5615E

northeast by north

  1. a compass point that is one point north of due northeast : N3345E

north·east·er [nȯrth-'ē-stər, nȯr-'ē-] -n

  1. a strong northeast wind
  2. a storm with northeast winds

north·east·er·ly [nȯrth-'ē-stər-lē] -adv or adj

  1. from the northeast
  2. toward the northeast

north·east·ern [-stərn] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a region conventionally designated Northeast
  2. lying toward or coming from the northeast

North·east·ern·er [-stə(r)-nər] -n

  1. a native or inhabitant of a northeastern region (as of the U.S.)

north·east·ward [nȯrth-'ēs-twərd, nȯr-'ēs-] -adv or adj, adv

  1. toward the northeast

northeastward -n

  1. northeast

north·er ['nȯr-thər] -n

  1. a strong north wind
  2. a storm with north winds

north·er·ly [-lē] -adj or adv

  1. situated toward or belonging to the north
    • the northerly border
  2. coming from the north
    • a northerly wind

northerly -n

  1. a wind from the north

north·ern ['nȯr-thə(r)n] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a region conventionally designated North
  2. of, relating to, or constituting the northern dialect
  3. lying toward the north
  4. coming from the north
    • a northern storm

northern -n

  1. the dialect of English spoken in the part of the U.S. north of a line running northwest through central New Jersey, below the northern tier of counties in Pennsylvania, through northern Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, across central Iowa, and through the northwest corner of So. Dakota
  2. pike

northern corn rootworm -n

  1. a corn rootworm ( Diabrotica barberisyn. D. longicornis) often destructive to Indian corn in the northern parts of the central and eastern U.S.

Northern Cross -n

  1. a cross formed by six stars in Cygnus

North·ern·er ['nȯr-thə(r)-nər] -n

  1. a native or inhabitant of the North
  2. a native or resident of the northern part of the U.S.

northern harrier -n

  1. a widely distributed brown or grayish hawk ( Circus cyaneus) that inhabits open and marshy regions and has a conspicuous white patch on the rump called also marsh hawk

northern hemisphere -n

  1. the half of the earth that lies north of the equator

northern lights -n pl

  1. aurora borealis

northern oriole -n

  1. an American oriole ( Icterus galbula) that includes the Baltimore oriole and the Bullock's oriole when they are considered subspecies rather than separate species

northern pike -n

  1. pike

northern spotted owl -n

  1. a rare spotted owl ( Strix occidentalis caurina) of old forests on the Pacific coast of No. America from northern California to southern British Columbia

northern white cedar -n

  1. an arborvitae ( Thuja occidentalis) of eastern No. America that has branchlets in horizontal planes
  2. its wood called also white cedar

North Germanic -n

  1. a subdivision of the Germanic languages including Icelandic, Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish

north·ing ['nȯr-thiŋ, -th] -n

  1. difference in latitude to the north from the last preceding point of reckoning
  2. northerly progress

north·land ['nȯrth-,land, -lənd] -n

  1. land in the north : the north of a country

North·man ['nȯrth-mən] -n

  1. norseman

northnorth·east ['nȯrth-,nȯrth-'ēst, -,nȯr-'ēst] -n

  1. a compass point that is two points east of due north : N2230E

northnorth·west ['nȯrth-,nȯr(th)-'west] -n

  1. a compass point that is two points west of due north : N2230W

north pole -n

  1. the northernmost point of the earth
  2. the corresponding point of a celestial body (as a planet)
  3. the zenith of the heavens as viewed from the north terrestrial pole
  4. the pole that points toward the north when the magnet is freely suspended

northseeking pole -n

  1. north pole

North Star -n

  1. the star of the northern hemisphere toward which the axis of the earth points called also polestar

North·um·bri·an [nȯr-'thəm-brē-ən] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of ancient Northumbria, its people, or its language
  2. of, relating to, or characteristic of Northumberland, its people, or its language

Northumbrian -n

  1. a native or inhabitant of ancient Northumbria
  2. a native or inhabitant of Northumberland
  3. the Old English dialect of Northumbria
  4. the Modern English dialect of Northumberland

north·ward ['nȯrth-wərd] -adv or adj, adv

  1. toward the north

northward -n

  1. northward direction or part
    • sail to the northward

north·west [nȯrth-'west, naut nȯr-'west] -adv

  1. to, toward, or in the northwest

northwest -adj

  1. coming from the northwest
    • a northwest wind
  2. situated toward or at the northwest
    • the northwest corner
  3. the general direction between north and west
  4. the point midway between the north and west compass points
  5. regions or countries lying to the northwest of a specified or implied point of orientation

northwest by north

  1. a compass point that is one point north of due northwest : N3345W

northwest by west

  1. a compass point that is one point west of due northwest : N5615W

north·west·er [nȯr(th)-'wes-tər] -n

  1. a strong northwest wind

north·west·er·ly [-lē] -adv or adj

  1. from the northwest
  2. toward the northwest

north·west·ern [-'wes-tərn] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a region conventionally designated Northwest
  2. lying toward or coming from the northwest

North·west·ern·er [-'wes-tə(r)-nər] -n

  1. a native or inhabitant of the Northwest and esp. of the northwestern part of the U.S.

north·west·ward [-'wes-twərd] -adv or adj, adv

  1. toward the northwest

northwestward -n

  1. northwest

nor·trip·ty·line [nȯr-'trip-tə-,lēn] -n

  1. a tricyclic antidepressant C 19H 21N used in the form of its hydrochloride

Nor·walk virus ['nȯr-,wȯk-] -n

  1. a highly infectious norovirus (species Norwalkvirus) that causes acute gastroenteritis in humans

Nor·way lobster ['nȯr-,wā-] -n

  1. langoustine

Norway maple -n

  1. a Eurasian maple ( Acer platanoides) with dark green or often reddish or red veined leaves that is much planted for shade in the U.S.

Norway rat -n

  1. brown rat

Norway spruce -n

  1. a widely cultivated spruce ( Picea abies) of northern Europe that has a pyramidal shape, spreading branches and pendulous branchlets, dark foliage, and long pendulous cones

Nor·we·gian [nȯr-'wē-jən] -n, adj

  1. a native or inhabitant of Norway
  2. a person of Norwegian descent
  3. the Germanic language of the Norwegian people

Norwegian elkhound -n

  1. any of a Norwegian breed of hardy short-bodied medium-sized dogs with erect ears and a very heavy coat of gray hairs with black tips

Nor·wich terrier ['nȯr-(,)wich-, Brit 'när-ich- or 'när-ij-] -n

  1. any of an English breed of small active low-set terriers that have a long straight wiry coat and erect ears

nos -abbr

  1. numbers

NOS -abbr

  1. not otherwise specified

nose ['nōz] -n

  1. the part of the face that bears the nostrils and covers the anterior part of the nasal cavity
  2. this part together with the nasal cavity
  3. the anterior part of the head at the top or end of the muzzle : snout, proboscis
  4. the sense of smell : olfaction
  5. aroma, bouquet
  6. the vertebrate olfactory organ
  7. the forward end or projection of something
  8. the projecting or working end of a tool
  9. the stem of a boat or its protective metal covering
  10. the nose as a symbol of prying or meddling curiosity or interference
  11. a knack for discovery or understanding
    • a keen nose for absurdity
  12. to detect by or as if by smell : scent
  13. to push or move with the nose
  14. to move (as a vehicle) ahead slowly or cautiously
    • nosed my car into the parking space
  15. to touch or rub with the nose : nuzzle
  16. to use the nose in examining, smelling, or showing affection
  17. to search impertinently : pry
  18. poke
  19. to move ahead slowly or cautiously
    • the boat nosed around the bend
  20. to move the forward end in a specified direction
    • the plane nosed up
  21. to advance into a slight lead

nose·band ['nōz-,band] -n

  1. the part of a headstall that passes over a horse's nose

nose·bleed [-,blēd] -n

  1. an attack of bleeding from the nose

nosebleed -adj

  1. extremely or excessively high
    • seats in the nosebleed section
    • nosebleed stock prices

nose cone -n

  1. a protective cone constituting the forward end of an aerospace vehicle

nosed ['nōzd] -adj

  1. having a nose esp. of a specified kind usu. used in combination
    • snub- nosed

nose·dive ['nōz-,dīv] -n, vi

  1. a downward nose-first plunge of a flying object (as an airplane)
  2. a sudden extreme drop
    • stock prices took a nosedive

noseeum [nō-'sē-əm] -n

  1. biting midge

nose·gay ['nōz-,gā] -n

  1. a small bunch of flowers : posy

nose·guard [-,gärd] -n

  1. a defensive lineman in football who plays opposite the offensive center

nose out -vt

  1. to discover often by prying
  2. to defeat or surpass by a narrow margin

nose·piece [-,pēs] -n

  1. a piece of armor for protecting the nose
  2. the end piece of a microscope body to which an objective is attached
  3. the bridge of a pair of eyeglasses

nose tackle -n

  1. noseguard

nose·wheel [-,hwēl, -,wēl] -n

  1. a landing-gear wheel under the nose of an airplane

nos·ey par·ker ['nō-zē-'pär-kər] -n

  1. busybody

nosh ['näsh] -vi, n

  1. to eat a snack
  2. munch
    • nosh ing on pizza
  3. a light meal : snack

noshow ['nō-,shō, -'shō] -n

  1. a person who reserves space (as on an airplane) but neither uses nor cancels the reservation
  2. a person who buys a ticket but does not attend
  3. a person who is expected but who does not show up
  4. failure to show up
  5. of, relating to, or being a job for which the holder is paid but performs few duties or is rarely present for work

nosing -n

  1. the usu. rounded edge of a stair tread that projects over the riser
  2. a similar rounded projection

nos·o·co·mi·al [,nä-sə-'kō-mē-əl] -adj

  1. acquired or occurring in a hospital
    • nosocomial infection

no·sol·o·gy [nō-'sä-lə-jē, -'zä-] -n, adj, adv

  1. a classification or list of diseases
  2. a branch of medical science that deals with classification of diseases

nos·tal·gia [nä-'stal-jə, nə- also nȯ-, nō-; nə-'stäl-] -n, adj or n, adv

  1. the state of being homesick : homesickness
  2. a wistful or excessively sentimental yearning for return to or of some past period or irrecoverable condition
  3. something that evokes nostalgia

nos·toc ['näs-,täk] -n

  1. any of a genus ( Nostoc) of usu. filamentous cyanobacteria that fix nitrogen

nos·tril ['näs-trəl] -n

  1. either of the external nares
  2. either of the nares with the adjoining passage on the same side of the septum
  3. either fleshy lateral wall of the nose

nos·trum ['näs-trəm] -n

  1. a medicine of secret composition recommended by its preparer but usu. without scientific proof of its effectiveness
  2. a usu. questionable remedy or scheme : panacea
    • an audience eager to believe he had found the nostrum for all of society's ills -- Warren Sloat

nosy ['nō-zē] -adj, adv, n

  1. of prying or inquisitive disposition or quality : intrusive

not ['nät] -adv

  1. used as a function word to make negative a group of words or a word
  2. used as a function word to stand for the negative of a preceding group of words
    • is sometimes hard to see and sometimes not

NOT ['nät] -n

  1. a logical operator that produces a statement that is the inverse of an input statement

nota ['nō-təm] -n

(variant of notum)

  1. the dorsal surface of a thoracic segment of an insect

no·ta be·ne [,nō-tə-'bē-nē, -'be-]

  1. used to call attention to something important

no·ta·bil·i·ty [,nō-tə-'bi-lə-tē] -n

  1. a notable or prominent person

no·ta·ble ['nō-tə-bəl, for 2 also 'nä-] -adj, n

  1. worthy of note : remarkable
  2. distinguished, prominent
  3. efficient or capable in performance of housewifely duties
  4. a person of note : notability
  5. a group of persons summoned esp. in monarchical France to act as a deliberative body

no·ta·bly ['nō-tə-blē] -adv

  1. in a notable manner : to a high degree
    • was notably impressed
  2. especially, particularly
    • other powers, notably Britain and the United States -- C. A. Fisher

no·tar·i·al [nō-'ter-ē-əl] -adj, adv

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a notary public
  2. done or executed by a notary public

no·ta·ri·za·tion [,nō-tə-rə-'zā-shən] -n

  1. the act, process, or an instance of notarizing
  2. the notarial certificate appended to a document

no·ta·rize ['nō-tə-,rīz] -vt

  1. to acknowledge or attest as a notary public

no·ta·ry public ['nō-tə-rē-] -n

  1. a public officer who attests or certifies writings (as a deed) to make them authentic and takes affidavits, depositions, and protests of negotiable paper called also notary

no·tate ['nō-,tāt] -vt

  1. to put into notation

no·ta·tion [nō-'tā-shən] -n, adj

  1. annotation, note
  2. the act, process, method, or an instance of representing by a system or set of marks, signs, figures, or characters
  3. a system of characters, symbols, or abbreviated expressions used in an art or science or in mathematics or logic to express technical facts or quantities

notch ['näch] -n, adj

  1. a V-shaped indentation
  2. a slit made to serve as a record
  3. a rounded indentation cut into the pages of a book on the edge opposite the spine
  4. a deep close pass : gap
  5. degree, step
  6. to cut or make a notch in
  7. to mark or record by a notch
  8. score, achieve sometimes used with up

notch·back ['näch-,bak] -n

  1. an automobile with a trunk whose lid forms a distinct deck
  2. the back of such an automobile

note ['nōt] -vt, n

  1. to notice or observe with care
  2. to record or preserve in writing
  3. to make special mention of or remark on
  4. indicate, show
  5. melody, song
  6. tone
  7. call, sound
  8. the musical call of a bird
  9. a written symbol used to indicate duration and pitch of a tone by its shape and position on the staff
  10. a characteristic feature (as of odor or flavor)
  11. something (as an emotion or disposition) like a note in tone or resonance
    • a note of sadness
    • end on a high note
  12. memorandum
  13. a condensed or informal record
  14. a brief comment or explanation
  15. a printed comment or reference set apart from the text
  16. a written promise to pay a debt
  17. a piece of paper money
  18. a government or corporate bond usu. with a maturity of between two and ten years
  19. a short informal letter
  20. a formal diplomatic communication
  21. a scholarly or technical essay shorter than an article and restricted in scope
  22. a sheet of notepaper
  23. distinction, reputation
    • a figure of international note
  24. observation, notice
    • took full note of the proceedings
  25. knowledge, information

note·book ['nōt-,bu̇k] -n

  1. a book for notes or memoranda
  2. a portable microcomputer that is similar to but usu. smaller than a laptop computer

note·case [-,kās] -n

  1. wallet

noted -adj, adv, n

  1. well-known by reputation : eminent, celebrated

note·less ['nōt-ləs] -adj

  1. not noticed : undistinguished

note of hand

  1. promissory note

note·pad ['nōt-,pad] -n

  1. pad

note·pa·per [-,pā-pər] -n

  1. writing paper suitable for notes

note·wor·thy [-,wər-thē] -adj, adv, n

  1. worthy of or attracting attention esp. because of some special excellence
    • a noteworthy contribution

notforprofit -adj

  1. nonprofit

noth·er ['nə-thər] -adj

  1. other used esp. in the phrase a whole nother used chiefly in speech or informal prose

noth·ing ['nə-thiŋ] -pron

  1. not any thing : no thing
    • leaves nothing to the imagination
  2. no part
  3. one of no interest, value, or consequence
    • they mean nothing to me

nothing -adv

  1. not at all : in no degree
  2. something that does not exist
  3. the absence of all magnitude or quantity
  4. zero
  5. nothingness, nonexistence
  6. someone or something of no or slight value or size
  7. a light, playful, or frivolous remark usu. used in pl.
    • whispered sweet nothing s
  8. of no account : worthless

noth·ing·ness [-nəs] -n

  1. : the quality or state of being nothing: as
  2. nonexistence
  3. utter insignificance
  4. death
  5. something insignificant or valueless
  6. void, emptiness

no·tice ['nō-təs] -n

  1. warning or intimation of something : announcement
  2. the announcement of a party's intention to quit an agreement or relation at a specified time
  3. the condition of being warned or notified usu. used in the phrase on notice
  4. information, intelligence
  5. attention, heed
  6. polite or favorable attention : civility
  7. a written or printed announcement
  8. a short critical account or review

notice -vt, n

  1. to give notice of
  2. to comment upon
  3. review
  4. to treat with attention or civility
  5. to take notice of : mark
  6. to give a formal notice to

no·tice·able ['nō-tə-sə-bəl] -adj, adv

  1. worthy of notice
  2. likely to be noticed

notice board -n

  1. a board bearing a notice or on which notices may be posted
  2. bulletin board

no·ti·fi·able ['nō-tə-,fī-ə-bəl, ,nō-tə-'] -adj

  1. required by law to be reported to official health authorities
    • a notifiable disease

no·ti·fi·ca·tion [,nō-tə-fə-'kā-shən] -n

  1. the act or an instance of notifying
  2. a written or printed matter that gives notice

no·ti·fy ['nō-tə-,fī] -vt, n

  1. to point out
  2. to give notice of or report the occurrence of
    • he notified his intention to sue
  3. to give formal notice to
    • notify a family of the death of a relation

notill ['nō-'til] -n

  1. no-tillage

notill·age [-'ti-lij] -n

  1. a system of farming that consists of planting a narrow slit trench without tillage and with the use of herbicides to suppress weeds

no·tion ['nō-shən] -n

  1. an individual's conception or impression of something known, experienced, or imagined
  2. an inclusive general concept
  3. a theory or belief held by a person or group
  4. a personal inclination : whim
  5. mind, intellect
  6. small useful items : sundries

no·tion·al ['nō-shnəl, -shə-nᵊl] -adj, n, adv

  1. theoretical, speculative
  2. existing in the mind only : imaginary
  3. given to foolish or fanciful moods or ideas
  4. of, relating to, or being a notion or idea : conceptual
  5. presenting an idea of a thing, action, or quality
    • has is notional in he has luck, relational in he has gone
  6. of or representing what exists or occurs in the world of things as distinguished from syntactic categories

no·to·chord ['nō-tə-,kȯrd] -n, adj

  1. a longitudinal flexible rod of cells that in the lowest chordates (as a lancelet or a lamprey) and in the embryos of the higher vertebrates forms the supporting axis of the body

no·to·ri·e·ty [,nō-tə-'rī-ə-tē] -n

  1. the quality or state of being notorious
  2. a notorious person

no·to·ri·ous [nō-'tȯr-ē-əs, nə-] -adj

  1. generally known and talked of
  2. widely and unfavorably known

no·to·ri·ous·ly [-lē] -adv

  1. in a notorious manner
  2. as is notorious : as is very well known
    • notoriously, they never got along

notrump -adj, n

  1. being a bid, contract, or hand suitable to play without any suit being trumps

Notts -abbr

  1. Nottinghamshire

no·tum ['nō-təm] -n

  1. the dorsal surface of a thoracic segment of an insect

not·with·stand·ing [,nät-with-'stan-diŋ, -with-] -prep

  1. despite
    • notwithstanding their inexperience, they were an immediate success
    often used after its object
    • the motion passed, our objection notwithstanding

notwithstanding -adv

  1. nevertheless, however
  2. although

nou·gat ['nü-gət, esp Brit -,gä] -n

  1. a confection of nuts or fruit pieces in a sugar paste

nought ['nȯt, 'nät] -pron

(variant of naught)

  1. nothing
    • efforts came to naught
  2. nothingness, nonexistence
  3. the arithmetical symbol 0 : zero, cipher

nou·me·non ['nü-mə-,nän] -n, adj

  1. a posited object or event as it appears in itself independent of perception by the senses

noun ['nau̇n] -n

  1. any member of a class of words that typically can be combined with determiners to serve as the subject of a verb, can be interpreted as singular or plural, can be replaced with a pronoun, and refer to an entity, quality, state, action, or concept

noun phrase -n

  1. a phrase formed by a noun and all its modifiers and determiners
  2. any syntactic element (as a clause, clitic, pronoun, or zero element) with a noun's function (as the subject of a verb or the object of a verb or preposition) abbr. NP

nour·ish ['nər-ish, 'nə-rish] -vt, n

  1. nurture, rear
  2. to promote the growth of
    • no occasions to exercise the feelings nor nourish passion -- L. O. Coxe
  3. to furnish or sustain with nutriment : feed
  4. maintain, support
    • their profits...nourish other criminal activities -- Beverly Smith

nour·ish·ing ['nər-i-shiŋ, 'nə-ri-] -adj

  1. giving nourishment : nutritious

nour·ish·ment ['nər-ish-mənt, 'nə-rish-] -n

  1. food, nutriment
  2. sustenance
    • books for intellectual nourishment
  3. the act of nourishing : the state of being nourished

nous -n

  1. : mind, reason: as
  2. an intelligent purposive principle of the world
  3. the divine reason regarded in Neoplatonism as the first emanation of God
  4. common sense, alertness

nou·veau [nü-'vō] -adj

  1. newly arrived or developed

nou·veau riche [,nü-,vō-'rēsh] -n

  1. a person newly rich : parvenu

nou·velle [nü-'vel] -adj

  1. of or relating to nouvelle cuisine
    • a nouvelle restaurant
  2. trendy, novel

nouvelle cuisine -n

  1. a form of French cuisine that uses little flour or fat and stresses light sauces and the use of fresh seasonal produce
  2. a national or regional cuisine that stresses lightness and freshness in preparation
    • American nouvelle cuisine

nouvelle vague [-'väg] -n

  1. new wave
  2. new wave

Nov -abbr

  1. November

no·va ['nō-və] -n, adj

  1. a star that suddenly increases its light output tremendously and then fades away to its former obscurity in a few months or years

nova -n

  1. cured and smoked salmon
  2. salmon that has been cured in a mixture of salt and sugar and smoked at a low temperature

no·vac·u·lite [nō-'va-kyə-,līt] -n

  1. a very hard fine-grained siliceous rock used for whetstones and possibly of sedimentary origin

no·va·tion [nō-'vā-shən] -n

  1. the substitution of a new legal obligation for an old one

nov·el ['nä-vəl] -adj

  1. new and not resembling something formerly known or used
  2. original or striking esp. in conception or style
    • a novel scheme to collect money

novel [,nä-və-'lis-tik] -n, adj, adv

  1. an invented prose narrative that is usu. long and complex and deals esp. with human experience through a usu. connected sequence of events
  2. the literary genre consisting of novels

nov·el·ette [,nä-və-'let] -n

  1. novella

nov·el·ett·ish [-'le-tish] -adj

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a novelette
  2. sentimental

nov·el·ist ['näv-list, 'nä-və-] -n

  1. a writer of novels

nov·el·ize ['nä-və-,līz] -vt, n

  1. to convert into the form of a novel
    • novelize a play

no·vel·la [nō-'ve-lə] -n

  1. a story with a compact and pointed plot
  2. a work of fiction intermediate in length and complexity between a short story and a novel

nov·el·ty ['nä-vəl-tē] -n

  1. something new or unusual
  2. the quality or state of being novel : newness
  3. a small manufactured article intended mainly for personal or household adornment usu. used in pl.
  4. something (as a song or food item) that provides often fleeting amusement and is often based on a theme often used attributively

No·vem·ber [nō-'vem-bər, nə-] -n

  1. the 11th month of the Gregorian calendar

November

  1. a communications code word for the letter n

no·ve·na [nō-'vē-nə] -n

  1. a Roman Catholic period of prayer lasting nine consecutive days

nov·ice ['nä-vəs] -n

  1. a person admitted to probationary membership in a religious community
  2. beginner, tyro

no·vi·tiate [nō-'vi-shət, nə-] -n

  1. the period or state of being a novice
  2. a house where novices are trained
  3. novice

no·vo·bi·o·cin [,nō-və-'bī-ə-sən] -n

  1. a weak dibasic acid C 31H 36N 2O 11that is highly toxic to humans and is sometimes used as an antimicrobial drug in some serious cases of staphylococcic and urinary tract infection

No·vo·cain ['nō-və-,kān] -trademark

  1. used for a preparation containing the hydrochloride of procaine

no·vo·caine [-,kān] -n

  1. procaine in the form of its hydrochloride
  2. a local anesthetic

now ['nau̇] -adv

  1. at the present time or moment
  2. in the time immediately before the present
    • thought of them just now
  3. in the time immediately to follow : forthwith
    • come in now
  4. used with the sense of present time weakened or lost to express command, request, or admonition
    • now hear this
    • now you be sure to write
  5. used with the sense of present time weakened or lost to introduce an important point or indicate a transition (as of ideas)
    • now, this may seem reasonable at first
  6. sometimes
    • now one and now another
  7. under the present circumstances
  8. at the time referred to
    • now the trouble began
  9. by this time
    • has been teaching now for twenty years
  10. in view of the fact that : since often followed by that
    • now that we are here
  11. the present time or moment
    • been ill up to now
  12. of or relating to the present time : existing
    • the now president
  13. excitingly new
    • now clothes
  14. constantly aware of what is new
    • now people
    • the now generation

NOW -abbr

  1. National Organization for Women

now·a·days ['nau̇-(ə-),dāz] -adv

  1. at the present time

now and then -adv

  1. from time to time : occasionally
    • now and then we go off to the country

no·way [-,wāz] -adv

  1. nowise
  2. not so : no used emphatically

no·where ['nō-,(h)wer, -(h)wər] -adv

  1. not in or at any place
  2. to no place
  3. not at all : not to the least extent usu. used with near
    • nowhere near as serious
    • nowhere near enough

nowhere -n

  1. a nonexistent place
  2. an unknown, distant, or obscure place or state
    • rose to fame out of nowhere
  3. of or relating to a remote or relatively unknown location
    • a nowhere town

no·wheres ['nō-,(h)werz, -(h)wərz] -adv

  1. nowhere

no·wheres·ville ['nō-,(h)werz-,vil, -(h)wərz-] -n

  1. : nowhere: as
  2. a location lacking identifying or individualizing qualities
  3. a place or state denoting failure or relative obscurity
    • a career heading towards nowheresville

no·whith·er ['nō-,hwi-thər, -,wi-thər; ,nō-'] -adv

  1. to or toward no place

nowin ['nō-'win, -,win] -adj

  1. not likely to give victory, success, or satisfaction : that cannot be won
    • a nowin situation
    • a nowin war

no·wise ['nō-,wīz] -adv

  1. not at all

now·ness ['nau̇-nəs] -n

  1. the quality or state of existing or occurring in or belonging to the present time

NO x -abbr

  1. nitrogen oxide

nox·ious ['näk-shəs] -adj, adv, n

  1. physically harmful or destructive to living beings
    • noxious waste
  2. constituting a harmful influence on mind or behavior
  3. morally corrupting
    • noxious doctrines
  4. disagreeable, obnoxious

noz·zle ['nä-zəl] -n

  1. a projecting vent of something
  2. a short tube with a taper or constriction used (as on a hose) to speed up or direct a flow of fluid
  3. a part in a rocket engine that accelerates the exhaust gases from the combustion chamber to a high velocity
  4. nose