Naught or Nought (rhyming to thought in R3 III, 6, 13 and Mcb. IV, 1, 70; to oft in Pilgr. 340) 1) nothing (usual orthogr. nought): Ven. 631 (cf. Gent. III, 1, 83). Gent. III, 1, 83 Lucr. 1092. Lucr. 1092 Sonn. 15, 3. 44, 13. 57, 11. Tp. I, 2, 18. III, 2, 74. Gent. III, 1, 83 (cf. Ven. 631). V, 4, 64. Err. IV, 1, 91. LLL I, 1, 92. Mids. III, 2, 462. Merch. V, 81. Merch. V, 81 Shr. I, 1, 166. All's III, 7, 21. Tw. I, 1, 11. Wint. II, 1, 177. John III, 4, 111. V, 7, 117. R2 I, 1, 53. II, 1, 83. II, 2, 23. H4B V, 5, 40. H5 I, 2, 251. H6A I, 2, 135. I, 3, 70. H6B III, 1, 216. III, 2, 366. V, 1, 7. R3 I, 1, 97. H8 I, 1, 43. II, 4, 135. Troil. I, 2, 314. I, 3, 19. I, 3, 19 Cor. V, 3, 93. Tit. I, 146. IV 4, 7. V, 1, 85. V, 1, 85. II, 3, 17. Tim. III, 6, 121. IV, 3, 376. Mcb. III, 2, 4. IV, 1, 70. Lr. II, 2, 86. Oth. I, 1, 48. Oth. I, 1, 48 IV, 2, 187. V, 2, 295. Ant. III, 5, 23. Cymb. III, 6, 49. V, 5, 9. Per. I, 4, 43. to set at n. == to slight, to despise: Gent. I, 1, 68. H4B V, 2, 85. Cor. III, 1, 270. all to n. (when all is staked to nothing) Ant. II, 3, 37. “a woman's nay doth stand for n.” Pilgr. 340 (is not meant in earnest). “it was not she that called him all to n.” Ven. 993 (== good for nothing, naughty).
2) naughty, worthless, wicked (usually spelt naught): “if I do not carve most curiously, say my knife's n.” Ado V, 1, 157. “the mustard was n.” As I, 2, 68. As I, 2, 68 “in respect that it is a shepherd's life it is n.” III, 2, 15. “his title was corrupt and n.” H5 I, 2, 73. “he that doth n. with her,” R3 I, 1, 99. (the play) is n. H8 Epil. R3 I, 1, 99 “all forsworn, all n., all dissemblers,” Rom. III, 2, 87. “n. that I am,” Mcb. IV, 3, 225. “you are n.” Hml. III, 2, 157. “thy sister's n.” Lr. II, 4, 136. “all's but n.” Ant. IV, 15, 78. “she was n.” Cymb. V, 5, 271. Substantively: “a paramour is, God bless us, a thing of n.” Mids. IV, 2, 14 (a naughty, wicked thing. Flute's speech).
3) lost, ruined: “thy fortune might happily have proved far worse than his. What, worse than n.?” H6B III, 1, 307. “away! all will be n. else,” Cor. III, 1, 231. “n., n., all n.” Ant. III, 10, 1. be n. awhile == the devil take you! As I, 1, 39. Substantively, == ruin, perdition: “all will come to n.” R3 III, 6, 13. “this great world shall so wear out to n.” Lr. IV, 6, 138.
Shakespeare Lexicon. Alexander Schmidt. Berlin. Georg Reimer. 1902.
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