not

not
not negative particle, mid-13c., unstressed variant of noht, naht "in no way" (see NAUGHT (Cf. naught)). As an interjection to negate what was said before or reveal it as sarcasm, it is first attested 1900; popularized 1989 by "Wayne's World" sketches on "Saturday Night Live" TV show. To not know X from Y (one's ass from one's elbow, shit from Shinola, etc.) was a construction first attested c.1930. Double negative construction not un- was derided by Orwell, but is persistent and ancient in English, popular with Milton and the Anglo-Saxon poets.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • Not — Not, adv. [OE. not, noht, nought, naught, the same word as E. naught. See {Naught}.] A word used to express negation, prohibition, denial, or refusal. [1913 Webster] Not one word spake he more than was need. Chaucer. [1913 Webster] Thou shalt not …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Not — [Contr. from ne wot. See 2d {Note}.] Wot not; know not; knows not. [Obs.] Chaucer. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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  • Not — Not, a. Shorn; shaven. [Obs.] See {Nott}. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Not I — This article is about the play. For the restriction enzyme NotI, see restriction enzyme. Photo of Lisa Dwan, Battersea Arts Centre © Allan Titmuss Not I is a twenty minute dramatic monologue written in 1972 (March 20 to April 1) by Samuel Beckett …   Wikipedia

  • Not — In Wikipedia, not is shorthand for What Wikipedia Is Not. Not is the general declarative form of no, indicating a negation of a related statement which it usually precedes. Not may refer to: Not!, an expression used as a contradiction, especially …   Wikipedia

  • not — adverb Etymology: Middle English, alteration of nought, from nought, pronoun more at naught Date: 13th century 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… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • NOT — noun Etymology: not Date: 1947 a logical operator that produces a statement that is the inverse of an input statement …   New Collegiate Dictionary

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  • Not the Nine O'Clock News — DVD cover. Left to right: Mel Smith, Pamela Stephenson, Rowan Atkinson and Griff Rhys Jones. Format Sketch comedy Starring …   Wikipedia

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