Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definitions: Nothingness |
NothingnessNoun1. The state of nonexistence. 2. Empty rhetoric or insincere or exaggerated talk; that's a lot of wind"; "don't give me any of that jazz". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "nothingness" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1415. (references) |
Synonyms: NothingnessSynonyms: idle words (n), jazz (n), nullity (n), void (n), wind (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Inexistence | Noun: inexistence; nonexistence, nonsubsistence; nonentity, nil; negativeness; Adjective: nullity; nihility, nihilism; tabula rasa, blank; abeyance; absence; no such thing; nonbeing, nothingness, oblivion. |
Unimportance | Noun: unimportance, insignificance, nothingness, immateriality. |
Unsubstantiality | Noun: unsubstantiality, insubstantiality; nothingness, nihility; no degree, no part, no quantity, no thing. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Nothingness |
| English words defined with "nothingness": blotted out ♦ Cipherhood ♦ Nihility, Nothingism ♦ obliterate, obliterated. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "nothingness": Cipherhood. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Don't let me fall into nothingness! I won't be happy there! (Freakazoid!; writing credit: Alan Burnett; Paul Dini) Embrace nothingness. (The Simpsons; writing credit: Artur Brauner; Paul Hengge) God, the devil, the nothingness? The nothingness, perhaps? (Sjunde inseglet, Det; writing credit: Ingmar Bergman) I love you! And that painful, decaying love is the only thing between you and the shrieking nothingness you live the rest of the day. (Network; writing credit: Paddy Chayefsky) Nothingness non-existence black emptiness (Love and Death; writing credit: Woody Allen) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
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Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | Philosophy pursues evil with its rigid search, and does not permit it to glide away into nothingness. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Nothingness" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 100.00% of the time. "Nothingness" is used about 89 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 100% | 89 | 34,931 |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "nothingness": nothingness-as-art. | |
Ending with "nothingness": Do-nothingness, next-to-nothingness. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day |
nothingness | 16 |
being and nothingness | 10 |
nothingness theory | 8 |
sartre being and nothingness | 5 |
finitude labyrinth nothingness | 3 |
infinite nothingness rom | 2 |
infinite nothingness | 2 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Language | Translations for "nothingness"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | të qenët një hiç, mosvlerë, mosqenie (nonentity). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | فراغ (air, blank, completion, emptiness, finishing, free time, gap, idleness, inane, inanity, leisure, space, spare time, vacancy, vacuity, vacuum, void), تفاهة (banality, inanity, insignificance, insignificancy, insipidity, nullity, pettiness, platitude, prosaism, triviality), عدم (beggary, mis-, negation, nil, non-, nought). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | незначителност (exiguity, exility, indifference, insignificance, insignificancy, littleness, puerility), небитие (negation, nonentity, nothing, nullity), нищожност (insignificance, insignificancy), нищо (naught, negation, never mind, nil, none, nothing, nought, ought), маловажност (immateriality, insignificance, insignificancy), баналност (baldness, banality, commonness, platitude, truism), дреболия (bagatelle, detail, doit, fiddlestick, fillip, knack, non essential, nothing, pin head, playgame, tittle, toy, trick, trifle, twopence). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 微不足" (Negligible). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | nicota, prázdno (playtime, vacancy, vacuity, void), marnost (futility, vanity). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | néant (nought), vide (non-pregnant), rien (not an ace, nothing), imbécillité (noodles). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | nichts (emptiness, mere cipher, naught, nil, Nix, nobody, non, none, nonentity, not smth., nothing, nought, trifle, triviality, void). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | μηδαμινότησ (nonentity, nullity, paltriness, trashiness, triviality, worthlessness), μηδαμινότητα (nobody, nonentity, nullity, trashiness, triviality, worthlessness), ανυπαρξία (absence, nonentity). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | שוא (falsehood, lie, vain, vanity, worthlessness), חוסר ערך, אפע, אפר (ash, dust), אפסות (futility, nullity, vainness, vanity). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | semmiség (doit, fillip, inanity, no sweat, nothing, nullity, peanuts, pin's head, pin's point, small matter, trifle), értéktelenség (paltriness, worthlessness). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | nullit (invalidity, naught, nil, nobody, nonentity, nullity, zero), inutilit (futility, idleness, inutility, uselessness, wantonness), il nulla. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Kanji | 虚無 (nihility). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Katakana | きょむ (nihility). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | neuhnee (naught, nil, nonentity, nothing). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | othingnessnay ninharia (Ace, bauble, dab, falderal, fallback, gewgaw, inch, knick knack, little, Nick nack, non essential, picayune, rap, straw, trifle, trinket), nada (anything, damn, iota, naught, nil, Nix, none, none of this concerns me, not an ace, nothing, nought, null, ought, zero, zilch), não-existência (nones), insignificância (bagatelle, cuss, dab, fillip, insignificancy, insignificant, kickshaw, littleness, minuteness, non essential, nonentity, pittance, rap, trifle, triviality), coisa sem importância (bauble, damn, knick knack, Nick nack, non essential, trifle), agnóstico (agnostic, know-nothing, negative, nescient). (various references) nimicnicie (vanity), nimic (anything, bauble, fillip, flea-bite, morsel, naught, negation, nil, nonentity, nothing, nought, stiver, trifle), nefiinţã (nonentity, non-existence), lipsã de însemnãtate (inconsequence, irrelevance), inexistenţã (absence, nonentity, non-existence, privation), fleac (a piece of cake, bauble, bunkum, chaff, doit, fillip, flapdoodle, flea-bite, flummery, fribble, kickshaw, knick knack, nil, nothing, peppercorn, pin head, push over, rot, rubbish, rubble, small beer, stiver, tittle tattle, trash, trifle, trinket), bagatelã (doit, humbug, knick knack, pin point, stiver, trifle, trinket). (various references) несущественность (immateriality), небытие (nonentity, nonexistence, nothing), ничтожество (insect, jack sprat, jack-straw, lay, nitwit, nobody, nought, nullity, whiffet, whippersnapper, whipper-snapper). (various references) ništavnost (inanity, insignificance, insignificancy, naught, naughtiness, nullity, vileness), ništavilo (blank). (various references) nada (any, aught, naught, nil, Nix, none, not any the, not at all, nothing, nought, nowt, peanuts). (various references) intighet, intet (nil, no, not, nothing). (various references) hiçlik (nonentity, nullity, zero), boşluk (abysm, abyss, antrum, backlash, blank, blankness, cavity, chamber, chasm, clear, clearance, daylight, desideratum, emptiness, gap, gulf, hiatus, hole, hollow, hollowness, idleness, inanition, Lacuna, nullity, separation, sinus, slack, slackness, space, vacancy, vacuity, vacuum, void, voidness), bilinçsizlik (stupor, unconsciousness), anlamsızlık (absurdity, absurdness, barrenness, fatuity, frivolity, inanity, incoherence, ineptitude, ineptness, inexpressiveness, insignificance, insignificancy, nonsensicalness, ridiculousness, unreason, vacuity). (various references) ніщо (any, anything, naught, negation, neither, nihil, nihility, none, nonentity, nothing, nought, nullity, zero), неістотність (immateriality, insignificancy), незначність (exiguity, exility, insignificance, littleness, negligibility, triviality), небуття (nihility, no-being, nonentity, non-existence, nothing), мізерність (pipsqueak), дрібниці (minutiae, nicety, nothing doing, notion, trivia). (various references) tính vô giá trị (voidness), tính tầm thường (commonplaceness, humbleness, inconsequentiality, littleness, matter-of-factness, paltriness, platitude, prosiness, soullessness, trivialism), tính nhỏ mọn (littleness, paltriness), hư vô (nihility), hư không tính vô t i. (various references) diddymdra (void). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | irritum. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "nothingness": nothingnesses. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "nothingness" (pronounced nu"thingnus) |
| 5 | -i ng n u s | unwillingness, willingness. |
| 3 | -n u s | abruptness, absoluteness, acuteness, aggressiveness, agribusiness, airworthiness, alertness, aloofness, alumnus, Anas, androgynous, anise, appropriateness, arbitrariness, assertiveness, astuteness, asynchronous, attentiveness, attractiveness, awareness, awfulness, awkwardness, backwardness, badness, bagginess, baldness, bearishness, bigness, bitterness, bituminous, blackness, blandness, bleakness, blindness, bluntness, boldness, bonus, boorishness, brashness, brightness, bullishness, business, callousness, calmness, carelessness, casualness, cautiousness, cavernous, cheapness, chitinous, cleanliness, cleanness, cleverness, closeness, cloudiness, clumsiness, cockiness, cohesiveness, coldness, Colonus, combativeness, compactness, competitiveness, completeness, consciousness, contagiousness, contentiousness, contrariness, Conus, coolness, correctness, coziness, craziness, creativeness, creditworthiness, creepiness, crispness, crookedness, cuteness, dampness, darkness, Deaconess, deadliness, deafness, decisiveness, defensiveness, destructiveness, directness, disingenuousness, distinctiveness, divisiveness, dizziness, dreariness, drowsiness, drunkenness, dryness, dullness, eagerness, earnestness, edginess, effectiveness, elusiveness, emptiness, evenness, exogenous, eyewitness, faintness, fairness, farsightedness, fastness, fickleness, firmness, fitness, flatness, fondness, foolishness, forcefulness, forgiveness, forthrightness, foulness, fractiousness, frankness, freshness, friendliness, frothiness, fullness, funniness, furnace, gauntness, gayness, gelatinous, gentleness, genuineness, genus, ghastliness, gluttonous, goodness, governess, graciousness, greatness, greenness, grimness, hairiness, handedness, happiness, hardness, harmfulness, harness, harshness, heinous, helplessness, highness, hoarseness, holiness, homelessness, homesickness, homogenous, hopefulness, hopelessness, humanness, idleness, illness, inclusiveness, indebtedness, indecisiveness, indigenous, ineffectiveness, ineptness, inertness, intravenous, intrusiveness, inventiveness, joblessness, Johannes, kindness, larcenous, largeness, lateness, lawlessness, laziness, lenis, lightfastness, lightness, likeness, liveliness, loneliness, lousiness, luminous, madness, Manus, meanness, membranous, menace, Minas, mindedness, minus, monotonous, mountainous, mutinous, narrowness, nastiness, nearsightedness, neatness, nervousness, newness, niceness, niggardliness, nitrogenous, nonbusiness, nonpoisonous, nosiness, numbness, ominous, oneness, onus, openness, orderliness, otherness, outrageousness, outspokenness, pandanus, peacefulness, penis, permissiveness, persuasiveness, pervasiveness, pettiness, playfulness, poisonous, politeness, polygynous, pompousness, possessiveness, powerlessness, preparedness, queasiness, quickness, quietness, raciness, randomness, rareness, ravenous, rawness, readiness, reasonableness, rebelliousness, recklessness, redness, remoteness, resistiveness, resourcefulness, responsiveness, restiveness, restlessness, restrictiveness, richness, righteousness, rightness, riskiness, robustness, roominess, roughness, rowdiness, rudeness, ruinous, ruthlessness, sacredness, sadness, Salinas, sameness, scantiness, secretiveness, selfishness, selflessness, sensitiveness, separateness, seriousness, shakiness, shallowness, sharpness, shortness, shortsightedness, shrewdness, shyness, sickness, silliness, sinus, skittishness, slackness, sleepiness, sloppiness, slovenliness, slowness, sluggishness, slyness, smallness, smoothness, smugness, softness, solitariness, soundness, spiritedness, squeamishness, starkness, steadfastness, steadiness, steepness, sternness, stiffness, stillness, stinginess, stoutness, strangeness, stubbornness, sturdiness, suddenness, suggestiveness, sweetness, swiftness, tardiness, tartness, tastiness, tenderness, tetanus, thickness, thinness, thoroughness, thoughtfulness, tightness, timeliness, tiredness, togetherness, toughness, trustworthiness, truthfulness, ugliness, unconsciousness, uneasiness, unfairness, unhappiness, uniqueness, unpleasantness, unwieldiness, usefulness, vagueness, vastness, venous, viciousness, villainous, vindictiveness, vividness, voluminous, wariness, wastefulness, waterishness, weakness, weariness, weightlessness, weirdness, wellness, wetness, whiteness, wholeness, wholesomeness, wickedness, wilderness, wildness, wimpiness, wistfulness, witness, wonderfulness, worldliness, worthiness, wryness. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "e-g-h-i-n-n-n-o-s-s-t" | |
-2 letters: histogens, sennights, sonneting, thingness. | |
-3 letters: histogen, histones, nighness, nothings, sennight, tenoning, tensions, thinness. | |
-4 letters: egoists, ensigns, ethions, henting, histone, hogties, hosting, hotness, ingests, intones, nesting, nighest, noshing, nosiest, nosings, nothing, sennits, sensing, shoeing, signets, sithens, sonnets, sonnies, stingos, stogies, stoning, stonish, tensing, tension, tonnish, tossing. | |
-5 letters: egoist, eights, enosis, ensign, eosins, essoin, ethion, ethnos. | |
| Words containing the letters "e-g-h-i-n-n-n-o-s-s-t" | |
+2 letters: nothingnesses. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)4E 6F 74 68 69 6E 67 6E 65 73 73 |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
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| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
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| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
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| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
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Morse Code (1836) (references)-. --- - .... .. -. --. -. . ... ... |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
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Binary Code (1918-1938, probably earlier) (references)01001110 01101111 01110100 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100111 01101110 01100101 01110011 01110011 |
HTML Code (1990) (references)N o t h i n g n e s s |
ISO 10646 (1991-1993) (references)004E 006F 0074 0068 0069 006E 0067 006E 0065 0073 0073 |
| British Sign Language (Fingerspelling, BSL; 1992, British Deaf Association Dictionary of British Sign Language) (references)
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Encryption (beginner's substitution cypher): (references)4881867475807380718585 |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Quotations: Fiction 7. Usage Frequency 8. Expressions | 9. Expressions: Internet 10. Translations: Modern 11. Translations: Ancient 12. Derivations | 13. Rhymes 14. Anagrams 15. Orthography 16. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
