naw
/nɔ/interjection
naw is spelled N-A-W: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an interjection, naw means “No” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in naw?
| Letters | 3: N-A-W |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.7 times per million words; the 21,209th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Sounds like | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is naw?
Naw appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce naw?
- UK /nɔː/
- US /nɔ/
- /nɑ/
Naw has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Words people confuse with naw
Sounds like: gnaw, nor (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with naw?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as naw from its last stressed vowel (/ɔ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: wan, awn.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
What does naw mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
interjection
- 1
informalNo.
- 2
Pronunciation spelling of not.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does naw come from?
In Scottish use, from Scots naw, naa, na, from Middle English na, from Old English nā (“no, never”). More generally, a colloquial, unarticulated form of no; compare nah. More at no.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).