no

Forms

no^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin nōn (“not”), with the final ⟨-n⟩ dropped when the word stands alone; the proclitic form before a verb kept it as non.^[2][3][4][1] Several Romance languages split the Latin word in the same way into an unstressed negation before the verb and a stressed one that negates a whole sentence: Sardinian non and no, French ne and non.^[3] The other forms are Catalan no, Occitan no, Spanish no, Portuguese não and Romanian nu.^[3][5] Tuscan also has a short form “un”.^[5]

Latin “nōn” comes from the older Latin noenum, from a phrase meaning “not one”, made of the negative ne and the old form of ūnus (“one”).^[6][2][1] Wiktionary considers this uncertain and mentions a derivation from an emphatic Proto-Indo-European negation instead.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

No is first recorded before 1250, as a negative answer that stands for a whole clause.^[7] Nocentini dates the form to the middle of the 13th century, and the full non to 1065.^[3]

Semantic evolution

Petrarch sets it against an adjective: Pallida no, ma più che neve bianca (“Not pale, but whiter than snow”).^[8] As a noun no is a refusal or a vote against, and in slogans and notices it means “no to” (no alle discriminazioni).^[7] At the end of a sentence it works as a tag question asking for agreement.^[1][9] Nossignore “no, sir”, from the phrase no signore, is recorded from 1842.^[3]

Timeline

• 1065 – The full form non is first recorded.^[3]
• Before 1250 – No is first recorded.^[7]
• 1842 – Nossignore is first recorded.^[3]

Meanings

Adverb

1. no, as an answer that negates a whole clause: “Hai fame?” “No.”^[7][9]
2. With a reinforcing word: no davvero, proprio no.^[7][9]
3. not, set against an affirmative: Qualcuno è d'accordo, qualcuno no.^[10][7]
4. After di or che, standing for a negative clause: Spero di no.^[7]
5. At the end of a sentence, asking for agreement, right?: Vieni anche tu, no?^[1][9]
6. In slogans and notices, no to, against: no alla guerra.^[7]

Noun

1. A no, a refusal; a vote against: Ha risposto con un no deciso.^[7]

Word family

• nossignore
• nì

Related words

• non

Usage notes

No has an open vowel, /ˈnɔ/, and in Tuscan pronunciation doubles the following consonant.^[4][9] A minor homograph is nō or no, the Japanese Noh drama, from Japanese 能 (nō, “skill, talent”), recorded in Italian from 1904.^[3][7][1] English no “anti-” has also been borrowed in phrases such as no comment and no vax.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
5. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
6. ^ Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
8. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
9. ^ a b c d e Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
10. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana