different between notwithstanding vs not

English

Alternative forms

• noughtwithstanding (obsolete and rare)
• nonwithstanding (misconstruction)

Etymology

From Middle English notwithstandinge, notwithstondyng, natwithstandyng, equivalent to not +? withstanding. Compare Middle English notgainstonding, not a?enstondynge, of similar meaning and formation.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?n?tw?ð?stænd??/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?n?tw???stænd??/
• Rhymes: -ænd??

Adverb

notwithstanding (not comparable)

1. Nevertheless, all the same.

   He, notwithstanding, persisted in his inquiries.

   • 1599, William Shakespeare, The Merry Wives of Windsor, i 4:

     But notwithstanding, man,
     I'll do you your master what good I can;

   • 1789, United States Contitution, Supremacy Clause:

     This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:notwithstanding.

Synonyms

• (nevertheless): all the same, nevertheless, nonetheless, still, anyway, after all, regardless, yet; see also Thesaurus:nevertheless

Translations

Conjunction

notwithstanding

1. Although.
   • 1724, Daniel Defoe, Roxana: The Fortunate Mistress, ch. 30:

     Upon which Amy had said, that notwithstanding I was angry with her and had used her so hardly for saying something about her of the same kind, yet there was an absolute necessity of securing her and removing her out of the way;

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:notwithstanding.

Usage notes

• The conjunction is sometimes expressed in the form notwithstanding that, as in "the front was nearly four miles in advance, notwithstanding that the men marched three abreast" (Dickens, Barnaby Rudge, ch. 49. See citations page.).

Translations

Preposition

notwithstanding

1. In spite of, despite.
   • 1675, Richard Allestree, The Causes of the Decay of Christian Piety

     Those on whom Christ bestowed miraculous cures were so transported that their gratitude made them, notwithstanding his prohibition, proclaim the wonders he had done.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:notwithstanding.

Synonyms

• regardless of, maugre (obsolete); see also Thesaurus:despite

Postposition

notwithstanding

1. In spite of, despite.
   • 2014, Richard Rae, "Manchester United humbled by MK Dons after Will Grigg hits double", The Guardian, 26 August 2014:

     Van Gaal’s dismissal of his ability to play a central role notwithstanding, Shinji Kagawa began playing just behind the strikers Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernández.

   • 1679 — Habeas Corpus Act, section 11

     And be it declared and enacted by the authority aforesaid, that an Habeas Corpus, according to the true intent and meaning of this act, may be directed and seen in any county Palatine, the Cinque Ports, or other privileged places within the Kindgom of England, dominion of Wales, or town of Berwick upon Tweed, and the islands of Jersey and Guernsey; any law or usage to the contrary notwithstanding.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:notwithstanding.

Synonyms

• (in spite of): despite, in spite of, maugre (obsolete)

Derived terms

• notwithstanding clause (Canada)

Translations

Noun

notwithstanding (plural notwithstandings)

1. An instance of the word "notwithstanding", often characteristic of legalese.
   • 2003, Banesh Hoffmann, The Tyranny of Testing (page 53)

     It is not for nothing that our language has its ifs and buts, its yets and howevers, its neverthelesses and notwithstandings, its possiblies and probablies and perhapses, and its on-the-other-hands.

   • 2004, Trevor Carolan, Down in the Valley: Writing in British Columbia (page 107)

     Letters from the English usually contained very formally typed documents with lots of heretofores and whereases and notwithstandings.

   • 2010, Richard Marcinko, Red Cell (page 149)

     The agreements were filled with wheretofores and herebys and hereafters and notwithstandings.

English

Etymology

From Middle English not, nat, variant of noght, naht (“not, nothing”), from Old English *n?ht, n?ht (“nought, nothing”), short for n?wiht, n?wiht (“nothing”, literally “not anything”), corresponding to ne (“not”) + ?wiht, ?wiht (“anything”), corresponding to ? (“ever, always”) + wiht (“thing, creature”).

Cognate with Scots nat, naucht (“not”), Saterland Frisian nit (“not”), West Frisian net (“not”), Dutch niet (“not”), German nicht (“not”). Compare nought, naught and aught. More at no, wight, whit.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation)
  • IPA^(key): /n?t/
• (General American)
  • IPA^(key): /n?t/
• (Ireland) IPA^(key): [n??t]
• Rhymes: -?t
• Homophone: knot
• Homophone: naught, nought (cot–caught merger)

Adverb

not (not comparable)

1. Negates the meaning of the modified verb.

   ‘Do they know?’ ‘I believe not’ (formal)

   • 1973 November 17, Richard Milhous Nixon, Orlando press conference:

     People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I'm not a crook. I've earned everything I've got.

   • 1991, Stephen Fry, The Liar, p. 59:

     The sound of Abba singing 'Dancing Queen' had started up in a room the other side of the court. Adrian slammed the window shut.
     ‘That'll teach you to throw things out of the window,’ said Gary.
     ‘It'll teach me not to throw things out of the window.’

   • 1998 January 26, William Jefferson Clinton, White House press conference:

     I want to say one thing to the American people. I want you to listen to me. I'm going to say this again: I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.

   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Oh, Pete. This is not the gym. — That’s right, Anna. This is the mailroom.

   Not knowing any better, I went ahead.

2. To no degree.

3. (understatement, litotes) Used to indicate the opposite or near opposite, often in a form of understatement.

   That day was not the best day of my life. (meaning the day was bad or awful)

   It was not my favorite movie of all time. (meaning the speaker dislikes or strongly dislikes the movie)

   In the not too distant future my view on the matter might be not a million miles away from yours.

Usage notes

In modern usage, do-support requires that the form do not ... (or don’t ...) be preferred to ... not for all but a short list of verbs (be, have, can, shall, will, would, may, must, need, ought):

• They do not sow. (modern) vs. They sow not. (KJB)

American usage tends to prefer don’t have or haven’t got to have not or haven’t, except when have is used as an auxiliary (or in the idiom have-not):

• I don’t have a clue or I haven’t got a clue. (US)
• I haven’t a clue or I haven’t got a clue. (outside US)
• I haven’t been to Spain. (universal)

The verb need is only directly negated when used as an auxiliary, and even this usage is rare, especially in the US.

• You don’t need to trouble yourself. (common)
• You needn’t trouble yourself. (outside US, rare)
• I don’t need any eggs today. (universal)

The verb dare can sometimes be directly negated.

• I daren't do that.

The verb do, as a main verb, takes do not.

• He does not do that.

In the imperative, all verbs, including be, take do not.

• Don't do that.
• Don't be silly. (not *Be not silly.)

In the infinitive, verbs must be negated directly. In this case not cannot appear after the verb; some authorities recommend placing it before to to avoid a split infinitive, but for most speakers the forms not to do and to not do are more or less interchangeable, with the latter being mostly informal.

• The objective is not to lose or The objective is to not lose.
• I wanted not to go or I wanted to not go. (Note the difference between this and I didn't want to go, where want is the verb being negated.)

In the subjunctive mood, do-support is not used for negation; not is placed by itself, or with should, immediately before the verb it modifies, even be:

• They suggested that he (should) not do it.
• The law requires that it (should) not be done.

Derived terms

• not to put too fine a point on it

Related terms

Translations

Conjunction

not

1. And not.

   I wanted a plate of shrimp, not a bucket of chicken.

   He painted the car blue and black, not solid purple.

Usage notes

• The construction “A, not B” is synonymous with the constructions “A, and not B”; “not B, but A”; and “not B, but rather A”.

Translations

Interjection

not!

1. (slang, 1990s) Used to indicate that the previous phrase was meant sarcastically or ironically.

   I really like hanging out with my little brother watching Barney... not!

   Sure, you're perfect the way you are... not!

Synonyms

• bender, I don't think

Translations

See also

• Appendix:American Dialect Society words of the year

Noun

not (plural nots)

1. Alternative letter-case form of NOT

Usage notes

Boolean operators and states are commonly written in all uppercase in order to distinguish them from the ordinary uses of the words.

Translations

Contraction

not

1. (obsolete) Contraction of ne wot; not to know.

   • I noot which was the fairer of hem two

See also

References

• not at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• -ton, NTO, ONT, Ont, Ont., TNO, TON, on't, ton

Albanian

Etymology

From notoj.

Noun

not m

1. swim

Related terms

• notoj (“to swim”), bën not (“to swim”)

Aromanian

Etymology 1

From Greek ????? (nótos).

Alternative forms

• Not

Noun

not m

1. dry wind from the south

Synonyms

• iug

See also

• vimtu
• sud/Sud
• livã
• austru

Etymology 2

Verb

not

1. Alternative form of anot to swim

Etymology 3

From anot (“I swim”). Compare Italian nuoto, Portuguese nado.

Noun

not m

1. swim, swimming

Synonyms

• notalui

Danish

Etymology 1

From German Nut.

Noun

not c (singular definite noten, plural indefinite noter)

1. (mechanics) A groove.

Inflection

Etymology 2

From Norwegian not.

Noun

not c or n (singular definite noten or notet, plural indefinite noter or not)

1. (fishing) seine net

   Synonym: snurpenot

Inflection

Derived terms

• snurpenot

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the main entry.

Verb

not

1. imperative of note

Icelandic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n??t/
• Rhymes: -??t

Noun

not n pl (plurale tantum)

1. use

Declension

Synonyms

• (use): gagn, notkun

Derived terms

• koma að notum (to be of use, to be useful)

Related terms

• nota (“to use”)

Indonesian

Etymology

From Dutch noot, from Middle Dutch note, from Old French note, from Latin nota. Doublet of nota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n?t/
• Hyphenation: not

Noun

not

1. (music) note, a character, variously formed, to indicate the length of a tone, and variously placed upon the staff to indicate its pitch.

   Synonym: titi nada

Compounds

Further reading

• “not” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia (KBBI) Daring, Jakarta: Badan Pengembangan dan Pembinaan Bahasa, Kementerian Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Republik Indonesia, 2016.

Luxembourgish

Adjective

not

1. strong/weak nominative/accusative neuter singular of no

Middle English

Alternative forms

• nat, note, notte, nate, nut

Etymology

Reduction of nought (from Old English n?wiht, n?wiht).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n?t/, /nat/

Adverb

not

1. not (negates the accompanying verb)

2. not (to no degree, extent, or way)

Descendants

• English: not
• Scots: nat (obsolete)
• Yola: nat

References

• “not, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Noun

not (uncountable)

1. nothing, nought
2. (rare) nobody, no person

Descendants

• English: not
• Scots: nat (obsolete)

References

• “not, pron.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?nu?t/ (example of pronunciation)

Etymology 1

From Old Norse nót.

Noun

not f (definite singular nota, indefinite plural nøter, definite plural nøtene)

1. Alternative spelling of nót

Etymology 2

From Middle Low German.

Noun

not f (definite singular nota, indefinite plural noter, definite plural notene)

1. alternative spelling of nót

Etymology 3

From Old Norse hnot.

Noun

not f (definite singular nota, indefinite plural neter, definite plural netene)

1. alternative spelling of nòt (non-standard since 2012)

References

• “not” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Anagrams

• ton

Old English

Alternative forms

• n?t

Etymology

From Latin nota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /not/

Noun

not m (nominative plural notas)

1. a sign; mark; a mark made on an object

Declension

Descendants

• Middle English: note, noote
  • Scots: note
  • English: note

Old Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse nót, from Proto-Germanic *n?t?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /no?t/

Noun

n?t f

1. net, seine

Declension

Descendants

• Swedish: not

Romansch

Alternative forms

• (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan, Sutsilvan, Surmiran) notg

Etymology

From Latin noctem, accusative of nox, from Proto-Indo-European *nók?ts.

Noun

not f (plural nots)

1. (Puter, Vallader) night

Scottish Gaelic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n???ht?/

Noun

not m (genitive singular not, plural notaichean)

1. Alternative form of nota

Swedish

Etymology 1

From Old French note (noun), noter (verb), both from Latin nota.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?nu?t/

Noun

not c

1. (music) note.
2. a short message; note.
3. (diplomacy) a formal message from a country to another country’s embassy.

Declension

Etymology 2

Noun

not c

1. seine

Declension

Anagrams

• ont, ton

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English North.

Noun

not

1. North

Turkish

Etymology

From French note.

Noun

not (definite accusative notu, plural notlar)

1. a short message; note

Declension