aught

Name: aught, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ɔːt/

//ɔːt// pron

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“aught” is an uncommon English word, ranked #57,221 in English word frequency and used as a pronoun.

#57,221
frequency rank, English: 5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Anything whatsoever, any part.

Key facts for aught
Property	Value
Headword	aught
Language	English
Part of speech	Pronoun
IPA	/ɔːt/
Letters	5
Frequency rank	#57,221
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “aught” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). aught lands here:

#57,221

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for aught is 5 letters long, classified as a pronoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɔːt/. Corpus data places it at rank #57,221 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Anything whatsoever, any part.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for aught in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English aught, ought, from Old English āht, āwiht, from ā (“always", "ever”) + wiht (“thing", "creature”). More at wight. The correct English form is aught, spelled A-U-G-H-T.

Definition

1
Anything whatsoever, any part.

Etymology

From Middle English aught, ought, from Old English āht, āwiht, from ā (“always", "ever”) + wiht (“thing", "creature”). More at wight.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "aught"?

"aught" is spelled A-U-G-H-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ɔːt/.

What does "aught" mean?

As a pronoun, "aught" means: Anything whatsoever, any part.

How do you pronounce "aught"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "aught" is /ɔːt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What is the origin of the word "aught"?

From Middle English aught, ought, from Old English āht, āwiht, from ā (“always", "ever”) + wiht (“thing", "creature”). More at wight. See the full etymology section above for more details.

Is PlainSpell free to use?

Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “aught”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

The one correct English spelling is A-U-G-H-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ɔːt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.