DictionaryAI

naughty

SayNAW-tee/ˈnɔti/UK/ˈnɔːti/

Adjectivenaughtier, naughtiest

Verbnaughties, naughtying, naughtied

6 meanings of naughty

Practice

  1. 1
    adjective
    Behaving badly or disobediently, tending to misbehave, especially of a child.

    The teacher kept the naughty children inside during recess.

    Their youngest is naughty, forever testing how far the rules will bend.

    Similardisobedient, mischievous, bad, unruly

    Oppositegood, obedient, well-behaved

    Note

    The everyday sense is the gentlest descendant of a much harsher word. Late Middle English noughti meant "evil, immoral": it was built from nought in that same sense plus an adjective-forming suffix, so the word can still be read as naught + -y. The schoolroom mischief of naughty boys is that old wickedness worn down to size. It compares regularly: naughtier, naughtiest.

  2. 2
    adjective
    Sexually provocative; in modern weakened use, merely risqué or cheeky.

    The magazine ran a naughty photo spread that scandalized its older readers.

    Their anniversary weekend involved champagne and some decidedly naughty lingerie.

    Similarsaucy, racy, suggestive, provocative

    Oppositeinnocent, modest

  3. 3
    adjectivecolloquial
    Indulgent or decadent, enjoyed as a treat, especially one that is unhealthy.

    She allowed herself a naughty second helping of dessert.

    A glass of wine on a weeknight felt deliciously naughty.

    Similarindulgent, decadent, sinful, wicked

    Oppositevirtuous, healthy

  4. 4
    verbtransitive
    To engage in sexual acts with another person.

    The rake boasted he could naughty any maid he fancied.

    She refused to let the stranger naughty her behind the tavern.

    Similarbed

Less common meanings

  1. 5
    adjectivearchaic
    Evil, wicked, or morally reprehensible.

    The preacher denounced the naughty deeds of the town's corrupt magistrate.

    Scripture condemns the naughty heart that turns away from goodness.

    Note

    Here the word is at full strength, and it trips modern readers. When Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice has a good deed shine "in a naughty world," or Milton's Areopagitica (1644) speaks of "a naughty mind," the meaning is wicked, not mischievous. Read it this way in early modern texts. Today it is rare and archaic, long overtaken by the childish meaning.

  2. 6
    adjectiveobsolete
    Bad, worthless, or below an acceptable standard.
    In Cornwall is two speches, the one is naughty Englysshe, and the other is Cornysshe speche.
    1542, Andrew Boorde, The First Boke of the Introduction of Knowledge
    One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad.
    1611, The Holy Bible, King James Version
    Note

    This sense judges quality rather than conduct. The King James Bible of 1611 sets "very good figs" beside "very naughty figs, which could not be eaten," and Andrew Boorde in 1542 calls the English spoken in Cornwall "naughty Englysshe," meaning poor English, not wicked. The sense is long obsolete, but knowing it keeps such passages from being misread as moral judgments.

Practice

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Origin

From late Middle English noughti or naughty ("evil, immoral, wicked"), from nought ("evil, immoral") plus the adjective-forming suffix -y; analysable as naught + -y.