- nitrogen cycle n. 1. Ecology The circulation of nitrogen in nature, consisting
of a cycle of chemical reactions in which atmospheric nitrogen is compounded,
dissolved in rain, and deposited in the soil, where it is assimilated and
metabolized by bacteria and plants, eventually returning to the atmosphere by
bacterial decomposition of organic matter.
- nitwit n. A stupid or silly person.
- nix2 Slang n. Nothing. adv. Not so; no. tr.v. To forbid, refuse, or veto:
Congress nixed the tax hike.
- nixie or nixy n. Slang A misaddressed or illegibly addressed piece of mail,
therefore undeliverable.
- no-account adj. Informal Worthless; good-for-nothing: my no-account
brother-in-law.
- nob1 n. 1. Slang The human head.
- nob2 n. Ciefly British Slang A person of wealth or social standing: "The nobs
were forever snubbing the snobs."
- nobble tr.v. Chiefly British 1. To disable (a racehorse), especially by
drugging. 2. To win (a person) over. 3. To outdo or get the better of by
devious means. 4. To filch or steal. 5. To kidnap. -nobbler n.
- nobby adj. Fashionable; stylish.
- nobiliary adj. Of or relating to the nobility.
- nobiliary particle n. A preposition used as a mark of noble rank before a
title or surname, as German von in Christian von Wolf and French de in Simone
de Beauvoir.
- noble gas n. Any of the elements in Group O of the periodic table, including
helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon, and radon, whcih are monatomic and with
limited exceptions chemically inert. Also called inert gas.
- noble metal n. A metal or alloy, such as gold, that is highly resistant to
oxidation and corrosion.
- noble rot n. A parasitic fungus that attacks ripe grapes and causes an
increase in their sugar content. Certain wines, such as the French Sauternes
and the Hungarian Tokay, are produced from such grapes.
- noblesse oblige n. Benevolent, honorable behavior considered to be the
responsibility of persons of high birth or rank.
- noctilucent adj. Luminous at night. Used especially of certain high clouds.
- nocturnal emission n. An involuntary ejaculation of semen during sleep.
- nocuous adj. Harmful; noxious.
- nod v. -intr. 3. To be careless or momentarily inattentive as if sleepy;
lapse: Even Homer nodes.
- noddle n. The head.
- noddy n. 1. A dunce or fool; a simpleton. 2. Any of several terns found in
tropical waters.
- nodose adj. Charcterized by or having many nodes or protuberances, jointed or
knobby at intervals.
- nodus n. A difficult situation or problem; a complication.
- Noel n. 1. Christmas. 2. A Christmas carol.
- no-fault adj. 1. Of, indicating, or being a system of motor vehicle insurance
in which accident victims are compensated by their insurance companies without
assignment of blame. 2. Law Of, indicating, or being a type of divorce in
which blame is assigned to neither party.
- no-frills adj. Informal Marked by the absence of extra or special features;
basic: no-frills housing; no-frills airline service.
- nog n. 1. A wooden block built into a masonry wall to hold nails that support
joinery structures. 2. A wooden peg or pin.
- noggin n. 1. A small mug or cup. 2. A unit of liquid measure equal to one
quarter of a pint. 3. Slang The human head.
- nogging n. 1. Brickwork used to fill in the open spaces in a wall between
studs or or [sic] other framing members. 2. A short horizontal wooden beam
used to strengthen upright posts in the framework of a wall.
- noisome adj. 1. Offensive to the point of arousing disgust; foul: a noisome
odor. 2. Harmful or dangerous: noisome fumes.
- nolens volens adv. Whether willing or unwilling.
- nolle prosequi n. Abbr. nol. pros. A declaration that the plaintiff in a civil
case or the prosecutor in a criminal case will drop prosecution of all or part
of a suit or indictment.
- nolo contendere n. A plea made by the defendant in a criminal action that is
substantially but not technically an admission of guilt and subjects the
defendant to punishment but permits denial of the alleged facts in other
proceedings.
- no-load adj. Business Sold directly to customers at net asset value without a
sales commission: a no-load mutual fund.
- no-lose adj. Slang Certain to end happily or successfully.
- nominal quote n. The approximate price of a security when there is no firm bid
or asking price. Also called subject quote.
- nonage n. 1. The period during which one is legally underage. 2. A period of
immaturity: "The Bravest achievements were always accomplished in the nonage
of a nation."
- nonagenarian n. A person 90 years old or between 90 and 100.
- nonbank adj. Of, relating to, or done by a business or an institution that is
not a bank but performs similar services.
- nonbook n. A book having little or no literary merit or substance, often
published to exploit a fad. adj. Of, relating to, or being something other
than a book, such as microfilm in a library.
- nonce n. The present or particular occasion: "Her tendency to discover a touch
of sadness had for the nonce disappeared."
- nonce word n. A word occurring, invented, or used just for a particular
occasion; for example, the word mileconsuming in "the wagon beginning to
fall into its slow and mileconsuming clatter."
- non compos mentis adj. Not of sound mind and hence not legally responsible;
mentally incompetent.
- nondescript adj. Lacking distinctive qualities; having no individual character
or form.
- nonesuch also nonsuch n. 1. A person or thing without equal.
- nonevent Informal An anticipated or highly publicized event that does not
occur or proves anticlimactic or boring.
- nonself n. That which the immune system identifies as foreign to the body.
- nonstarter n. 1. One that fails to start. 2. An idea, proposal, or candidate
with no chance of being accepted or successful: "Many lawmakers are
pronouncing the budget a nonstarter.
- non-U adj. Chiefly British Not characteristic of the upper class, especially
in language usage.
