No

/niː/ adj, adv, det, name, noun, particle, prep, verb, slang

adj, adv, det, name, noun, particle, prep, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: Alternative form of No..
  • Grammar: no is listed as adj, adv, det, name, noun, particle, prep, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: abnegation, affirmative, atomic number 102, au contraire.
  • Useful contrasts: all, alright, some.
  • Usage evidence: It's no use pretending to make me believe that I believe things you don't believe!

How to use "no"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "no" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "no" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "no" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "no" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "no" is acting as adj, adv, det, name, noun, particle, prep, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "abnegation" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "no", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Alternative form of No.. alt-of, alternative
  2. 2
    Alternative form of Noh: a form of classical Japanese drama. alt-of, alternative, countable, uncountable
  3. 3
    A negating expression; an answer that shows disagreement, denial, refusal, or disapproval.

    "Q: I'll answer any ten questions that call for a yes or a no."

  4. 4
    Alternative form of No.. alt-of, alternative
  5. 5
    a negative wordnet
Show 2 more definitions
  1. 6
    A vote not in favor, or opposing a proposition.

    "The workers voted on whether to strike, and there were thirty yeses and two nos."

  2. 7
    a radioactive transuranic element synthesized by bombarding curium with carbon ions; 7 isotopes are known wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    To say “no”. colloquial, intransitive

    "She felt disquiet at these tales of Musa’s illicit activities. ‘Does your father know?’ / ‘My father always noes. He never yeses. Specially when he’s sick, then he noes all the time. I gotta get out. Can’t stick around the house with him yelling.[…]’"

  2. 2
    To answer with “no”; to decline, reject. colloquial, transitive

    "Never accustom yourself to say ‘Yes,’—practise an emphatic and decisive enunciation of the far more dignified and important monosyllable, ‘No.’ […] Believe me, it is of the utmost importance (the advice is not of recent date) that you should No the world."

Adjective
  1. 1
    Initialism of normally open. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Adjective
  1. 1
    (quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns for indicating a complete or almost complete lack or zero quantity of wordnet
Adverb
  1. 1
    Alternative form of No.. alt-of, alternative, archaic, not-comparable
  2. 2
    Not, not at all.; Used before different, before comparatives with more and less, and idiomatically before other comparatives. not-comparable

    "It is a less physical kind of torture, but no less gruesome."

  3. 3
    Alternative form of No.. alt-of, alternative, archaic, not-comparable
  4. 4
    Not, not at all.; Used idiomatically before certain other adjectives. informal, not-comparable

    "This thing is no good."

  5. 5
    Not. Scotland, informal, not-comparable

    "I just want to find out whether she's coming or no."

Show 1 more definition
  1. 6
    Not, does not, do not, etc. colloquial, humorous, not-comparable, usually

    "Ug no like veggie."

Adverb
  1. 1
    used to express refusal or denial or disagreement etc. or especially to emphasize a negative statement wordnet
  2. 2
    not in any degree or manner; not at all wordnet
  3. 3
    referring to the degree to which a certain quality is present wordnet
Determiner
  1. 1
    Not any.

    "no one"

  2. 2
    Hardly any.

    "We'll be finished in no time at all."

  3. 3
    Not any possibility or allowance of (something).

    "No smoking. No parking."

  4. 4
    Not (a); not properly, not really; not fully.

    "My mother's no fool."

Particle
  1. 1
    Used to show disagreement, negation, denial, refusal, or prohibition.

    "No, you are mistaken."

  2. 2
    Used to express sadness or disappointment.

    "We lost. / No!"

  3. 3
    Used to express disbelief.

    "I got the job! / No! Really? That's fantastic!"

  4. 4
    Used to show agreement with a negative question.

    ""Don’t you like milk?" "No." (i.e., "No, I don’t like milk.")"

  5. 5
    Used together with an affirmative word or phrase to show agreement. colloquial

    "No, totally."

Preposition
  1. 1
    Without.

    "Look Ma, no hands!"

  2. 2
    Like.
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    Initialism of Novus Ordo. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
  2. 2
    A lake in South Sudan.
  3. 3
    A county of South Sudan.

Synonyms

All synonyms
abnegationaffirmativeatomic number 102au contraireaustralian ballotaye

Example

"It's no use pretending to make me believe that I believe things you don't believe!"

Common questions

What does "no" mean?

Alternative form of No..

What is a synonym for "no"?

Common synonyms include: abnegation, affirmative, atomic number 102, au contraire, australian ballot, aye.

How do you use "no" in a sentence?

It's no use pretending to make me believe that I believe things you don't believe!

How do you pronounce "no"?

Pronounced /niː/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

Variant of No., from the scribal abbreviation for Latin numero (“in number, to the number of”).

Etymology 2

A macronless variant of Nō, the romanization of Japanese 能 (Nō, “[performing] skill, talent”).

Etymology 3

Inherited from Middle English no, noo, na, a reduced form of none, noon, nan (“none, not any”) used before consonants (compare a to an), from Old English nān (“none, not any”), from Proto-West Germanic *nain, from Proto-Germanic *nainaz (“not any”, literally “not one”), equivalent to ne (“not”) + a. Piecewise doublet of none Cognate with Scots nae (“no, not any, none”), Old Frisian nān, nēn ("no, not any, none"), Saterland Frisian naan, neen (“no, not any, none”), North Frisian nian (“no, not any, none”), Old Dutch nēn ("no, not any, none"; > Dutch neen (“no”)), Old Norse neinn (“no, not any, none”). Compare also Old Saxon nigēn ("not any"; > Low German nen), Old Dutch nehēn (Middle Dutch negheen/negeen, Dutch geen), West Frisian gjin, Old High German nihein (> German kein). More at no, one.

Etymology 4

Inherited from Middle English no, na, from Old English nā, nō (“no, not, not ever, never”), from Proto-West Germanic *naiwō, from Proto-Germanic *naiwô (“never”), *ne (“not”), from Proto-Indo-European *né, *nē, *nēy (negative particle), equivalent to Old English ne (“not”) + ā, ō (“ever, always”). Cognate with Scots na (“no”), Saterland Frisian noa (“no”), West Frisian né (“no”), nea (“never”), Dutch nee (“no”), Low German nee (“no”), German nie (“never”), dialectal German nö (“no”), Danish nej (“no”), Swedish nej (“no”), Icelandic nei (“no”). More at nay.

Etymology 5

Variant of No., from the scribal abbreviation for Latin (in) numerō (“in number, to the number of”).

More for "no"

Synonyms

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsBrowse writing guidesExplore topic clusters