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"If you know aught which does behove my knowledge / Thereof to be inform'd, imprison't not / In ignorant concealment," Polixenes begs Camillo in William Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale, employing the "anything" sense of aught. Shakespeare didn't coin the pronoun aught, which has been a part of the English language since before the 12th century, but he did put it to frequent use. Writers today may be less likely to use aught than were their literary predecessors, but the pronoun does continue to turn up occasionally. Aught can also be a noun meaning "zero," and "the aughts" is heard occasionally for the decade at the beginning of a century (say, 1900-1909 or 2000-2009) in which the penultimate digit is a zero.
Examples of aught in a Sentence
Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 2 June 2025
While the brand quickly became synonymous with the 1990s UK music scene—having Liam Gallagher sport them on-stage certainly didn’t hurt—the aughts saw the business’s fortunes recede and its manufacturing go overseas.
—Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 2 June 2025
Widespread obsession with women dating or married to top athletes originally gained traction in the early aughts, mainly in the UK surrounding high-profile soccer players.
—Cortne Bonilla, Vogue, 29 May 2025
Amiri, 46, detailed working the door at the now shuttered Bungalow 8, a popular celebrity hangout spot in the early aughts, during a Wednesday, May 21, interview with Page Six Radio hosts Evan Real and Danny Murphy.
—Madison E. Goldberg, People.com, 22 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for aught
Cite this Entry
“Aught.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aught. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
aught
1 of 2 pronoun
aught
2 of 2 nounPronoun
Old English āwiht "anything," from ā "ever, always" and wiht "creature, thing"
Noun
from naught "zero," from mistaking a naught for an aught
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