no Italian · revision 37436

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=before 1250|origins=la noenum}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈnɔ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''no'''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|nōn|t=not]], with the final ⟨-n⟩ dropped when the word stands alone; the proclitic form before a verb kept it as [[non]].^(Devoto 1968)^(Nocentini 2010)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary) 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: [[sc|non]] and [[m|sc|no]], [[fr|ne]] and [[m|fr|non]].^(Nocentini 2010) The other forms are [[ca|no]], [[oc|no]], [[es|no]], [[pt|não]] and [[ro|nu]].^(Nocentini 2010)^(REW 1935) Tuscan also has a short form “un”.^(REW 1935)

+

+ Latin “nōn” comes from the older [[la|noenum]], from a phrase meaning “not one”, made of the negative [[m|la|ne]] and the old form of [[m|la|ūnus|t=one]].^(DELI 1999)^(Devoto 1968)^(Wiktionary) Wiktionary considers this uncertain and mentions a derivation from an emphatic Proto-Indo-European negation instead.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ ''No'' is first recorded before 1250, as a negative answer that stands for a whole clause.^(GRADIT 2003) Nocentini dates the form to the middle of the 13th century, and the full ''non'' to 1065.^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Petrarch sets it against an adjective: ''Pallida no, ma più che neve bianca'' (“Not pale, but whiter than snow”).^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861) As a noun ''no'' is a refusal or a vote against, and in slogans and notices it means “no to” (''no alle discriminazioni'').^(GRADIT 2003) At the end of a sentence it works as a tag question asking for agreement.^(Wiktionary)^(Devoto–Oli 2026) ''Nossignore'' “no, sir”, from the phrase ''no signore'', is recorded from 1842.^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1065 – The full form ''non'' is first recorded.^(Nocentini 2010)

+ * Before 1250 – ''No'' is first recorded.^(GRADIT 2003)

+ * 1842 – ''Nossignore'' is first recorded.^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Adverb===

+ # [[m|en|no]], as an answer that negates a whole clause: ''“Hai fame?” “No.”''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)

+ # With a reinforcing word: ''no davvero'', ''proprio no''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)

+ # [[m|en|not]], set against an affirmative: ''Qualcuno è d'accordo, qualcuno no.''^(Treccani 2011)^(GRADIT 2003)

+ # After ''di'' or ''che'', standing for a negative clause: ''Spero di no.''^(GRADIT 2003)

+ # At the end of a sentence, asking for agreement, right?: ''Vieni anche tu, no?''^(Wiktionary)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)

+ # In slogans and notices, no to, against: ''no alla guerra''.^(GRADIT 2003)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A no, a refusal; a vote against: ''Ha risposto con un no deciso.''^(GRADIT 2003)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[nossignore]]

+ * [[nì]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[non]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''No'' has an open vowel, /ˈnɔ/, and in Tuscan pronunciation doubles the following consonant.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Devoto–Oli 2026) A minor homograph is ''nō'' or ''no'', the Japanese [[m|en|Noh]] drama, from [[ja|能|tr=nō|t=skill, talent]], recorded in Italian from 1904.^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary) English ''no'' “anti-” has also been borrowed in phrases such as ''no comment'' and ''no vax''.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}