English
nothing
Nothing comes from Middle English nothyng, from Old English nāþing, nān þing ‘nothing’, literally ‘not any thing’.
- Old Englishc. 450–1150nān þing‘nothing’
- Old English, derivedc. 450–1150nāþing‘nothing’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500nothyng‘not any thing’
- Englishearliest quotation 1651–1653nothing
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Old Englishc. 450–1150nān þing‘nothing’
- Old English, derivedc. 450–1150nāþing‘nothing’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500nothyng‘not any thing’
- Englishearliest quotation 1651–1653nothing
Earliest quotation: 1651–1653, Jeremy Taylor, London: […] Richard Royston […]: “Sermons are not like curious inquiries after new nothings,…”
Every English word from Old English nān þing
Today it means
pron Not any thing; no thing.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Old English nān þing / nothing