aught means at all, in any degree, in any respect. It carries an Arena rating of 1641, earned across 7 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, aught ranks #368 of 42,762 for Qualifying, #2,721 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #3,238 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #3,456 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words.
aught is pronounced /ɔːt/.
Why “aught” is a great word
Aught means anything whatsoever; in older usage, it can also denote a whit or iota, the digit zero, or in any degree at all. From Middle English aught, ought, from Old English āwiht ("anything"), from ā ("ever") + wiht ("thing, creature"), first recorded before 1000. Unlike “naught,” which definitively seals the void, or “anything,” which serves the modern tongue with blunt utility, aught carries the strange doubleness of being and absence. It is the solitary candle in an empty chapel, the ghost-scent of ink on a blank page, the almost-undetectable warmth of a room after the fire has gone out—the smallest trace of something where nothing should remain.
Etymology
From Middle English aught, ought, from Old English āht, āwiht, from ā (“always", "ever”) + wiht (“thing", "creature”). More at wight.
adv
- At all, in any degree, in any respect.e.g.“[…] and if your love
Can labour aught in sad invention,
Hang her an epitaph upon her tomb,
And sing it to her bones [...]” — 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] B
noun
- Whit, the smallest part, iota.
- Zero.
- The digit zero.
- Estimation.e.g.“in my aught”
- Of importance or consequence (in the phrase "of aught").e.g.“an event of aught”
- Esteem, respect.e.g.“a man of aught”
pron
- Anything whatsoever, any part.e.g.“for aught I know/care”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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