Aughts

/ɔːts/ noun

Definition

The digits zero through nine, or the years 2000-2009 (the 2000s decade).

Etymology

From Middle English 'aught' meaning 'anything' or 'zero', derived from Old English 'āwiht' (a creature, something). The term evolved to mean the numeral zero and later referred to the decade starting with 00.

Kelly Says

The word 'aughts' is why we called the 2000s by that name instead of 'the two-thousands'—it's the only decade name that comes from a linguistic quirk about how we say zero!

Related Words

Explore More Words

Get the Word Orb API

Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.