INDEX:
1. when there is not any of something
2. the number that means none
3. less than none
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ LOT
see also
↑ NOT
↑ NEVER
↑ AMOUNT
↑ FEW/NOT MANY
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1. when there is not any of something
▷ none /nʌn/ [pronoun]
not any of something, or not any people or things :
▪ I was going to offer you some cake, but there’s none left.
▪ ‘Coffee?’ ‘None for me, thanks.’
none of
▪ None of her friends live in London.
▪ None of my clothes fit anymore.
▪ Parents complain that none of the money set aside for the school has been spent on textbooks.
none at all/none whatsoever/absolutely none
especially spoken
▪ ‘Do you have any objections to the plan, John?’ ‘None at all.’
▪ ‘The mayor has no tolerance for violent criminals, absolutely none,’ said a spokesperson.
▪ Under the Constitution, the President has no legal authority -- none whatsoever -- to commit the United States to war.
▷ not any /nɒt ˈeni/ [determiner/pronoun]
none :
▪ You won’t find any, I’m afraid I haven’t been shopping yet.
▪ There aren’t any good book stores in town.
▪ We won’t be getting any extra-large shirts until tomorrow.
▪ The clerk said he didn’t have any change.
▪ There won’t be any time for questions after the lecture.
not any of
▪ I haven’t read any of Henry Miller’s novels.
not any more/not any left
spoken
▪ She asked for a copy of the ‘Boston Globe’ but there weren’t any left.
▷ no /nəʊ/ [determiner]
not any or not one :
▪ There are no buses on Sundays.
▪ a very plain room, with no pictures on the wall
▪ Do you mind having black coffee? There’s no milk.
▪ We’ve had no rain for three months.
▪ There was no room in the car for anyone else.
▪ I knocked on the door, but there was no reply.
▪ He just started hitting her for no reason.
▪ Some athletes have no intention of getting an education while they’re at college.
no more
▪ There are no more classes until Monday.
▷ nothing/not anything /ˈnʌθɪŋ, nɒt ˈeniθɪŋ/ [pronoun]
▪ There’s nothing in this box.
▪ Many older people don’t know anything about computers.
▪ I switched the TV on, but nothing happened.
▪ ‘What are you doing?’ ‘Nothing.’
nothing new/serious/exciting etc
▪ Nothing exciting ever happens in this place!
nothing to eat/say/do etc
▪ There was nothing to do, so we just watched TV.
▪ She hasn’t had anything to eat all day.
nothing at all
▪ ‘Do you know anything about fixing cars?’ ‘No, nothing at all.’
nothing else
nothing more
▪ As he listened, he understood the word ‘shimai’, which means ‘sister’, but nothing else.
nothing else to say/do etc
▪ I had nothing else to do so I cleaned the kitchen.
▪ We will make an announcement next week; we have nothing else to say until then.
▷ zilch /zɪltʃ/ [uncountable noun] especially American, spoken
nothing :
▪ She knows absolutely zilch about marketing.
▪ The federal government does zilch to help struggling farmers.
▷ not one /nɒt ˈwʌn/ [pronoun]
none - use this when the situation is very unusual or unexpected :
▪ ‘Do you have any batteries?' ’Not one. We’ve completely sold out."
▪ According to the report, of the 10 best cities in which to do business, not one is in California.
not one of
▪ We examined over a hundred machines and not one of them was working properly.
▷ not a /ˈnɒt ə/ [determiner]
not even one
:
▪ It all happened so fast, I didn’t see a thing.
▪ Usually there were voices to be heard coming from the living room, but tonight there was not a sound.
▪ There wasn’t a scrap of food in the house.
not a dickybird
British informal nothing at all
▪ I haven’t heard a dickybird from him all morning.
▷ be nil /biː ˈnɪl/ [verb phrase]
if the amount of something is nil, there is none of it and you feel disappointed about it :
▪ With their best player injured, England’s chances of winning the game were just about nil.
▪ Refreshment facilities for long-distance bus passengers are virtually nil.
▷ bugger all /ˌbʌgər ˈɔːl/ [pronoun/determiner] British informal
nothing or not any of something - this is an impolite expression which people use especially when they are angry :
▪ I hope she does some work at home. She does bugger all in the office.
▪ You’ll get bugger all thanks for helping them.
2. the number that means none
▷ zero /ˈzɪ ə rəʊǁˈziːrəʊ/ [uncountable noun]
the number 0 :
▪ The zip code for Annandale is zero eight eight zero one.
▪ The ZR1 can go from zero to sixty miles per hour in 4.3 seconds.
zero unemployment/growth/inflation etc
when there is none at all
▪ In the long run, zero inflation will bring lower interest rates.
▪ The government aims to hold the country’s population at zero-growth.
▷ nil British also zip American informal /nɪl, zɪp/ [uncountable noun]
zero - use this especially in sports results :
▪ At the end of the first half it’s Spurs two, Arsenal nil.
▪ ‘Who won?’ ‘The Yankees, five-zip.’
▪ By a seven-nil vote, the Council passed a resolution protecting the land from development.
▷ nought /nɔːt/ [uncountable noun] British
zero - used especially before or after a decimal point :
▪ Interest rates rose by nought point three percent today.
▪ ‘What did you score?’ ‘Nought out of ten.’
▷ o /əʊ/
zero - use this especially when saying a telephone number or the number after a decimal point. Pronounce this as the letter ‘o’ :
▪ I’ll be in room four-o-nine.
▪ It’s an inner London phone number, so you dial o-two-o-seven.
▪ One hundredth has the same value as point o one.
3. less than none
▷ negative /ˈnegətɪv/ [adjective]
negative numbers, figures etc are less than one :
▪ My bank statement shows a negative balance.
▪ Do you know how to multiply negative numbers?
▷ minus /ˈmaɪnəs/ [adjective only before noun]
minus 4 degrees/3%/10° F etc
four degrees, three per cent etc less than nothing :
▪ The temperature dropped to almost minus 40.
▪ a trade deficit of minus £4bn