# naughty

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈnɔːti/ · frequency rank #9,214

## Definitions
1. Mischievous; tending to misbehave or act badly (especially of a child).
2. Sexually provocative; now in weakened sense, risqué, cheeky.
3. Decadent, had as indulgence, especially an unhealthy one.
4. Evil, wicked, morally reprehensible.
5. Bad, worthless, substandard.

## Etymology
From late Middle English noughti, naughty (“evil, immoral, wicked”), from nought (“evil, immoral”) + -ī̆ (suffix forming adjectives). Analysable as naught + -y.

## Easily confused with
- **naught** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/naught-vs-naughty)

## Common misspellings (11)
`anughty`, `naguhty`, `naugghty`, `naughhty`, `naughtty`, `naughtyy`, `naughyt`, `naugthy`, `nauhgty`, `nnaughty`, `nuaghty`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/naughty