nulln.1
/nʌl/, U.S. /nəl/ 1.
a. Cryptography. A meaningless letter or symbol used to fill a space, to separate pieces of information, or to impede decipherment. Also figurative. Cf. non-significant n.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > secrecy, concealment > code, cipher > [noun] > individual letter
toc1898
null1915
society > communication > writing > written character > [noun] > in cryptography: character showing punctuation > meaningless letters or numbers in cryptograms
null1915
1605 F. Bacon Of Aduancem. Learning ii. sig. Qq1 The kindes of Cyphars (besides the Simple Cyphars with Changes, and intermixtures of Nulles, and Nonsignificants) are many. View more context for this quotation
a1626 F. Bacon Considerations War with Spain (1629) 5 If part of the People or Estate be somewhat in the Election, you cannot make them Nulls or Cyphers in the..Translation.
1685 J. Falconer Cryptomenysis Patefacta i. 16 Of inserting Nulls or Non-significants... Observe the frequency of the several characters. And by this means you may distinguish those Nulls from significant Letters.
1737 J. Davys Ess. are Decyphering 49 We judge a number to be a null, when the Sense is complete without it.
1819 A. Rees Cycl. VIII We have already considered the obscurity arising from the insertion of nulls at random.
1898 F. E. Hulme Cryptography 72 They are known as nulles, or non-significants also.
1915 J. Buchan Thirty-nine Steps iii. 72 It was a numerical cypher, and by an elaborate system of experiments I had pretty well discovered what were the nulls and stops.
1968 ‘S. Jay’ Sleepers can Kill iv. 47 A very simple cypher, Mr. Connor, but it can of course be broken by frequency analysis... Don't forget to reverse and arrange in five letter groups, of course, with nulls to make the numbers up.
1999 S. Singh Code Bk. i. 31 The best cryptanalysts were also capable of dealing with badly spelt messages and the presence of nulls.
b. Computing. Also in form NUL. A character which produces no effect or action but is used to fill up a space or to separate pieces of information. Also null character.
ΚΠ
1977 Electronic Design 27 Sept. 110 This extra time is often provided by software, with several null characters programmed after a carriage return.
1978 Dr. Dobb's Jrnl. Nov.–Dec. 15 We will set grounded pointers to a zero value, and delimit each string with the NUL character.
1993 UNIX Rev. May 28/3 Any unused bytes in this packet are filled with nulls.
1994 Microsoft Press Computer Dict. 273/1 NUL, a character code with null value... NUL is used in many situations—for example, to pad data fields, to terminate strings, and to separate blocks of information.
2.
a. Zero; a nought, a zero; (Mathematics) something equal to zero.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical number or quantity > [noun] > zero > nought or character zero
cipher1399
nullity1587
nullo1598
zero1604
null1648
naught1649
noughta1660
ought1821
aught1822
oh1908
1648 B. Gerbier Interpreter Acad. Forrain Langs. i. 137 The Arithmetickall Alphabet is composed of nine Characters to which is ioyned a teenth called Cifer, or Null,[French Nule] which of it selfe signifieth nothing, but augments the worth of the others.
1691 T. Hale Acct. New Inventions p. ix An Unite was too much, and a Null too little.
1863 Proc. Royal Soc. 1862–3 12 563 Sir W. Hamilton's i, j, k are not polar umbræ, because..ii, jj, kk, instead of being nulls, are in the Calculus of Quaternions taken as unities.
1882 Amer. Jrnl. Math. 5 99 The linear forms representing [7.17], [6.13], [6.14] cannot be identically nulls.
1932 A. Horsbøl tr. J. Jakobsen Etymol. Dict. Norn Lang. in Shetland II Null, a cipher, the numeral 0.
1953 R. W. Fairbrother Text-bk. Bacteriol. (ed. 7) x. 144 L0 (Limes nul) dose = largest amount of toxin which is just neutralized by 1 unit of antitoxin.
1995 C. J. Wells Use Orthogr. & Lexical Information for Handwriting Recognition (BNC) ii The arrays hold a variable number of pointers, and any unused ones are set to null.
b. Chiefly Radio and Electronics. A condition of no signal; a direction in which no (or minimum) signal is detected or emitted. Also: a point, state, or region in which no effect occurs, or in which effects cancel each other out.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > telecommunication > radio communications > [noun] > signal > condition of having no signal
null1931
1931 Proc. IRE 31 1426 The nulls and maxima..have been plotted in Fig. 16 for an element length of four wavelengths.
1968 M. Woodhouse Rock Baby xv. 150 I set up the loop of the D.F. set and plugged in the headset. When the signal came..I got a clear null a little west of due south.
1973 J. Hulbert All about Navigating vii. 96 It is much easier to pick out the softest point than the loudest point and so a null is used for direction finding.
1987 Ham Radio Today Jan. 53/1 The frame antenna is largely omni-directional but has two very deep nulls.
1997 Sound & Vision Feb. 14/3 The aim is to create a diffuse surround signal that..does not draw your attention to the surround speakers themselves. To achieve this, some surround speakers are dipoles, with the null aimed at the listening position.
3. figurative. A state of emptiness, featurelessness, lack of sensation, or non-existence; a void, a blank.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > fact of being unoccupied > [noun] > an unoccupied space
vacuity?1541
vacuum1589
blanka1616
gapa1616
vacancy1652
space1654
evacuity1655
void1697
chasm1759
lacuna1872
null1887
1887 F. W. L. Adams Poet. Wks. I. 39 I toil as toils a jaded horse Around the ever changing changeless track..till the null, That grinds in flour his heart and soul, is still.
1939 H. Miller Tropic of Capricorn 72 In this null and void, in this zero whiteness, I learned to enjoy a sandwich, or a collar button.
1972 B. Moore Catholics ii. 78 No feeling, that null, that void.
1987 P. Auster Country of Last Things (1988) 114 There was not even the certainty of death to console me—nothing more than a kind of blank, a ravening null.
4. Linguistics. An empty node in a grammatical structure. Cf. zero n. 7.
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the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > a part of speech > determiner > [noun] > other specific types of determiner
distributive1530
possessive adjective1870
identifier1938
null1964
1964 E. Bach Introd. Transformational Gram. v. 110 Since Y and Z (as usual) include the possibility of null, the transformation will have the desired effect of producing all permutations of the terminal elements.
1968 Amer. Speech 43 277 In treating few in ‘few people’ and much in ‘much money’ as pre-article forms, Roberts assumes the existence of an unarticulated determiner he calls null.
1968 R. T. Harms Introd. Phonol. Theory v. 44 If two obstruents occur initially, the first one is deleted. (Instead of ‘null’, the symbol ‘ø’ is sometimes used.)
5. Statistics. = null hypothesis n. at null adj. Compounds.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > probability or statistics > [noun] > significance > subject of
null hypothesis1935
null1967
1967 J. E. Hill & A. Kerber Models, Methods & Analyt. Procedures in Educ. Res. 293 The sampling distribution of the proper statistical test is chosen so that the data of the research will show either a significant discrepancy or deviation from the ‘null’, or no significant deviation from that hypothesis.
1970 Ann. Math. Statistics 41 266 The exact slope of TN′ for testing a normal null against any alternative H with correlation ρ > 0 is −log(1 − ρ2).
1992 D. F. Hendry in A. Vercelli & N. Dimitri Macroeconomics xiii. 369 Rejecting a null against a specific alternative contains little information about what the best (or even an appropriate) alternative model reformulation might be.
1996 Appl. Linguistics 17 100 This yielded a t-statistic of 3.26, which is significant at the 1 per cent level, and allows us to reject the null of no increase in MLR.
6. Genetics. An organism carrying a null allele; a null allele or mutation. Cf. null adj. 5.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > biological processes > genetic activity > genetic components > [noun] > allele
allelomorph1902
allele1928
null1972
1972 Amer. Naturalist 106 770 These ‘nulls’ would be metabolically compensated by alternative pathways but inefficiently enough to lower relative viability.
1975 Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 102 382/1 Of the variant alleles, 62% are nulls.
1989 Amer. Midland Naturalist 121 238 The other populations are monomorphic for apparent ‘nulls’, actually, probably the structural lack of the loci.
1997 Evolution 51 1613/2 In the Gulf pipefish this deviation can be explained by the presence of null alleles.., although nulls were not observed at this locus in the dusky pipefish.
Compounds
C1. General attributive (in sense 2b), as null detector, null determination, null indicator, etc.
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1931 J. A. Moyer & J. F. Wostrel Radio Handbk. xii. 601 A direct-current galvanometer, protected by a suitable shunt, is used as a null indicator.
1958 E. U. Condon & H. Odishaw Handbk. Physics iv. v. 66/2 Null determinations in d-c measurements are almost invariably made with a D'Arsonval-type galvanometer.
1962 Newnes Conc. Encycl. Electr. Engin. 94/2 The precision of a bridge measurement depends on the sensitivity of the null detector.
C2.
null method n. a scientific method, esp. in electrical measurement, based on the detection of the point at which an effect is zero, or at which two effects cancel each other out; cf. null adj. 2a.
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the world > matter > physics > [noun] > specific concepts or principles of > specific method of observing phenomena
null method1873
1873 J. C. Maxwell Treat. Electr. & Magnetism I. i. xiii. 263 Methods of this kind, in which the thing to be observed is the non-existence of some phenomenon, are called null or zero methods.
1946 V. N. Wood Metall. Materials iv. 110 Periodic adjustment of the current..can be avoided by the use of the..‘null’ method whereby the bridge is balanced and the indicator brought to zero by a variable resistance on the same side of the bridge as the bulb.
1971 J. Z. Young Introd. Study Man xvi. 201 This ingeniously establishes the change in growth power by a nul method.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
† nulln.2
Obsolete.
A type of small ball. Only in spell and null: = spell and knur at knur n. 3.
ΚΠ
a1809 T. Holcroft Memoirs (1816) I. 61 Spell and null, bandy, prison-bars, and other field games.
1816 Sporting Mag. 48 178 The games most common at Newmarket were fives, spell and null, marbles [and] chuck-farthing.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
nulladj.
/nʌl/, U.S. /nəl/ 1. † a. Scots Law. That has not been provided or performed; non-existent, amounting to nothing. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
1450 Edinb. Univ. MS Borland No. 206. 112 And he..fore defalt of apperance and fore nwll defence before the said lord [etc.]
c1565 Inst. Court of Sessions 14a Protestatioun being maid in the contrar for null diligence.
1672 in C. B. Gunn Rec. Baron Court Stitchill (1905) 62 In respect of the defenders null compeirance.
b. Law. Void, of no legal or binding force, of no efficacy, invalid.Earliest in Scottish use.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > rule of law > illegality > [adjective] > legally invalid or faulty
vicious1393
void1433
naughtc1449
irrite1482
frustrate1497
null1542
bad1613
inofficial1632
null and void1651
unfirm1660
uncurrent1702
invalid1768
inept1818
inoperative1885
1542 Acts Parl. Scotl. (1814) II. 416/2 It apperis..the said proces invalide, null & aganis all law & equite deducit & gevin.
1569 in J. H. Burton Reg. Privy Council Scotl. (1878) 1st Ser. II. 7 In caise the same titillis of the law be reduceable or may be declarit null.
1601 in G. Donaldson Court Bk. Shetland (1954) 105 Preceiding the daitis of thir presentis as faythles, noule and of nane effect.
1639 Sir T. Stafford in Lismore Papers (1888) 2nd Ser. IV. 66 There Late assemblie to be held null, the Kinge to appoint a new one.
1657 W. Morice Coena quasi Κοινὴ §23. 231 To say expressly that all is Null which was done at Pyworthy.
1714 R. Fiddes Pract. Disc. (ed. 2) II. 35 Their commands are originally null and of no force.
1765 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. I. xv. 425 If such consent from the father was wanting, the marriage was null.
1819 T. Jefferson Let. 6 Sept. in Writings (1984) 1427 Citizens were suffering without the authority of law, or, which was equivalent, under a law unauthorized by the constitution, and therefore null.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. v. 582 The act of attainder..would become superfluous at the very moment at which it ceased to be null.
1888 J. Bryce Amer. Commonw. I. xxxiv. 524 The tribunal is disposed rather to support than to treat as null the act done.
1949 Dict. National Biogr. 1931–40 at Tovey, Sir Donald F. A previous union was declared null; he married in 1925 Clara Georgina, youngest daughter of Richard Wallace.
1994 30 Days in Church & in World No. 10. 48/2 Couples who in conscience have arrived at the conviction that their previous marriage was null.
c. null and void. Cf. void adj. 7a. Also in extended use.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > rule of law > illegality > [adjective] > legally invalid or faulty
vicious1393
void1433
naughtc1449
irrite1482
frustrate1497
null1542
bad1613
inofficial1632
null and void1651
unfirm1660
uncurrent1702
invalid1768
inept1818
inoperative1885
the mind > mental capacity > memory > effacement, obliteration > cancellation, revocation > [adjective] > rendered void
irrite1482
frustrate1497
void1526
irritate1600
null and void1651
annihilatory1676
non inventus1678
invalid1768
non avenu1787
non est1858
negated1876
1646 G. Gillespie Malè Audis 27 It may be helped after it is done, without making null or void the Ministery.]
1651 in T. Jefferson Notes Virginia (1785) xiii. 202 First it is agreed..that the former government by the Commissions and Instructions be void and null.
1653 in J. A. Picton City of Liverpool: Select. Munic. Rec. (1883) I. 167 That the same Wryting bee utterly outed made null and voyde.
1669 A. Marvell Let. 12 Dec. in Poems & Lett. (1971) II. 96 Prorogation makes all bills votes & proceedings of this session null & voyd.
1709 Act 7 Anne in London Gaz. No. 4538/1 All Bail Bonds given by the said Ambassador..are utterly Null and Void.
1769 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) I. xvi. 109 Any votes given to him are null and void.
1803 Duke of Wellington Dispatches (1835) II. 610 I yesterday gave notice..that I should consider it null and void from the 27th instant.
1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xvii. 27 All acts done by the authority of the usurper Harold were held to be null and void.
1910 Encycl. Brit. I. 463/2 A state convention met in September of the same year, and declared the ordinance of secession null and void and slavery abolished.
1954 F. C. Avis Boxing Ref. Dict. 75 No contest, a declaration of the referee that the fight is null and void, usually because both contestants are making no serious efforts at boxing.
1988 F. Tomlin T. S. Eliot ii. 40 The Roman view was that Anglican orders were null and void.
2.
a. Chiefly Science. Amounting to nothing; nil; non-existent; esp. designating or relating to a point, region, or state in which no effect or force occurs or in which effects or forces cancel each other out.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > existence > non-existence > [adjective]
pretended1489
Oudemian streeta1586
not-being1594
unbeing1607
inexistent1646
non-existent1646
insubsistent1654
unented1657
unexistenta1682
non-existing1743
null1762
unexisting1785
nullibiquitous1820
non-entitous1831
beingless1835
non-entitive1872
non-entitative1889
nil1937
1762 Philos. Trans. 1761 (Royal Soc.) 52 277 The effect of the other planets is either null or known.
1792 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 82 242 Atmospheric electricity has been..variable..; sometimes quite null, then weak, or strong by turns.
1811 J. Pinkerton Petralogy II. 486 Its influence on that element was absolutely null.
1834 H. McMurtrie tr. G. Cuvier Animal Kingdom (abridged ed.) 384 The internal lobe of the maxillæ null or very small.
1860 M. F. Maury Physical Geogr. Sea (ed. 8) xv. §640 This calm zone..may be considered as a thermal adjustment—the dynamical null-belt—between the trade-winds of the two hemispheres.
1866 R. M. Ferguson Electricity 15 The combined effect of the two terrestrial poles..is thus null.
1910 Publ. Amer. Statist. Assoc. 12 310 This correlation coefficient..may be null because one variation covers up the other.
1961 H. S. Seifert & K. Brown Ballistic Missile & Space Vehicle Syst. xvii. 404 They [sc. gyroscopes]..operate as angular error detectors over a very small range around their reference or null positions.
1989 Monthly Notices Royal Astron. Soc. 241 43 Large variations in the X-ray flux are possible for small or null variations in the optical and infrared bands.
2001 Nature 16 Aug. 699/2 In 2627 bc, the misorientation associated with our obvious and straightforward method was null but precessionally increasing at 27.4′ cy−1 in azimuth.
b. Designating or relating to a scientific experiment or observation which indicates the absence or non-existence of a phenomenon or effect.
ΚΠ
1894 Philos. Trans. 1893 (Royal Soc.) A. 184 791 Since his null result is very surprising and remarkable, it may be as well to examine whether the introduction of the lens produces any disturbance.
1958 Science 7 Mar. 503/3 A new theory of motion could be worked out from which the null result of the Michelson–Morley experiment could be predicted.
1981 B. A. Farrell Standing of Psychoanal. viii. 161 This null finding conflicts with Freud's belief.
1988 New Scientist 29 Sept. 55/2 It proved a null experiment, concluding only that the fluctuation has to be below 0.0016 per cent.
2000 N.Y. Times 27 Feb. iv. 7/3 The writer is obliged to point out that null results can have far-reaching scientific importance.
c. Physics. Existing between or joining points in space–time between which the interval (interval n. 2c) is zero.Earliest in null cone n. at Compounds.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > relativity > space-time > [adjective] > designating points in space-time > between points of zero interval
null1925
1925 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 11 724 Conformal properties of a metric space of fundamental tensor gαβ are those persisting under transformations leaving the null cones gαβdxαdxβ=0 invariant.
1928 London, Edinb., & Dublin Philos. Mag. 7th Ser. 5 242 The history of a light wave in space-time is a null-surface.
1959 J. Aharoni Special Theory of Relativity i. 25 An interval ds between two events can be either real, zero, or imaginary... In the first case the interval is called space-like, in the second case a null-interval, and in the third case time-like.
1968 T. C. Bradbury Theoret. Mech. xiii. 589 Events separated by null vectors can be joined by light signals; in fact, the light cone is frequently called the null cone.
1996 Sci. Amer. July 46/1 A surface in space along which light travels is known as a null surface.
d. Esp. of a direction: characterized by the lack of an electrical or radio signal, or by the absence of detected or emitted radiation. Cf. null n.1 2b.
ΚΠ
1926 Bell Syst. Techn. Jrnl. 5 295 The number of lobes is, of course, equal to the number of null directions.
1931 Proc. IRE 31 1427 Figs. 15 and 16..give the null points. These are seen to be 0, 30, and 90 degrees in Fig. 15.
3.
a. Of no value or importance; insignificant, minimal; ineffective.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > importance > unimportance > [adjective] > worthless
naughteOE
unworthc960
nought worthOE
unworthya1240
vaina1300
lewd1362
base?1510
to be nothing toc1520
stark naught1528
nothing worth1535
worthilessa1542
draffish1543
baggage1548
dunghill?1555
valureless1563
toyish1572
worthless1573
out (forth) of door (also doors)1574
leaden1577
riff-raff1577
drafty1582
fecklessc1586
dudgeon?1589
nought-worth1589
tenpenny1592
wanwordy?a1595
shotten herring1598
nugatory1603
unvalued1604
priceless1614
unvaluable1615
valuelessa1616
waste1616
trashya1620
draffy1624
stramineous1624
invaluable1640
roly-poly?1645
nugatorious1646
perquisquilian1647
niffling1649
lazy1671
wanworth1724
little wortha1754
flimsy1756
waff1788
null1790
nothingy1801
nothingly1802
twopenny-halfpenny1809
not worth a flaw1810
garbage1817
peanut1836
duffing1839
trash1843
no-account1845
no-count1851
punky1859
rummagy1872
junky1880
skilligalee1883
footle1894
punk1896
wherry-go-nimble1901
junk1908
rinky-dink1913
schlock1916
tripe1927
duff1938
chickenshit1940
sheg-up1941
expendable1942
(strictly) for the birds1943
tripey1955
schlocky1960
naff1964
dipshit1968
cack1978
1790 E. Burke Refl. Revol. in France 259 Here the principle of contribution..is reprobated as null, and destructive to equality. View more context for this quotation
1803 T. R. Malthus Ess. Princ. Population (new ed.) iv. vii. 542 We take all possible pains to weaken and render null the ties of nature.
1821 T. Jefferson Autobiogr. in Writings (1984) 80 His mind was weakness itself, his constitution timid, his judgement null.
1842 C. Kingsley Lett. (1878) I. 79 Truth made practically null by modifying it to suit circumstances.
1880 A. W. Kinglake Invasion of Crimea (ed. 4) VI. ix. 304 Upon grounds thus weak, or, to speak more exactly, thus null he founded his charges.
1941 P. Hamilton Hangover Square iii. v. 91 Her beauty and power over him had been rendered null, inoperative, by her loathsomeness of character.
1992 T. Morrison Jazz 50 The outrageous expectations and inflexible demands of the weekend are null on Thursday.
b. Devoid of character or expression; lacking distinctive qualities, traits, or characteristics; empty.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > mediocrity > [adjective]
feeblec1275
demeanc1380
unnoblec1384
coarse1424
colourlessc1425
passable1489
meana1500
indifferent1532
plain1539
so-so1542
mediocre1586
ordinary1590
fameless1611
middling1652
middle-rate1658
ornery1692
so-soish1819
nohow1828
betwixt and between1832
indifferential1836
null1847
undazzling1855
deviceless1884
uncompetitive1885
tug1890
run of the mill1919
serviceable1920
dim1958
spammy1959
comme ci, comme ça1968
vanilla1972
meh2007
1847 H. Greville Diary 212 He strikes me as rather nul in society, gentlemanlike in manner though vulgar in appearance.
a1850 M. F. Ossoli At Home & Abroad (1860) 343 As to character, so null that everybody laughed.
1855 Ld. Tennyson Maud ii, in Maud & Other Poems 10 Faultily faultless, icily regular, splendidly null.
1889 H. F. Wood Englishman Rue Caïn i The ordeal of lighting up that terribly null countenance.
1931 V. Woolf Waves 232 At that hour your relationship is mute, null, dun-coloured.
1945 R. Jarrell Death of Ball Turret Gunner in Sel. Poems (1990) 71 This dull null Navy I wear to work, and wear from work.
2000 Observer 18 June (Review section) 10/6 Wolfgang Tillman's photographs are just as null as he wants them to be: off-handed shots of club scenes.
4.
a. Mathematics. Having or associated with the value zero; that is zero; analogous or equivalent to zero.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical number or quantity > [adjective] > zero
null1835
1835 W. R. Hamilton Conjugate Functions 23 The transition may be said to be null, or a null step, as producing no real alteration in the moment from which it is made.
1835 W. R. Hamilton Conjugate Functions 35 The null cardinal (or number none).
1898 A. N. Whitehead Treat. Universal Algebra ii. iii. 25 Since in combination with any other element the null element 0 disappears, the symbolism may be rendered more convenient by writing − a for 0 − a.
1922 E. H. Neville Prolegomena Analyt. Geom. v. v. 303 An ordinary circle of radius zero is called a nul circle.
1930 J. W. Young Projective Geom. ix. 158 If A and B coincide, the vector AB is called the null vector and is denoted by 0.
1956 R. H. Atkin Math. & Wave Mech. iii. 76 As in all algebras we find it convenient to introduce two identity operators. These are called the unit operator (idem factor) and the nul operator (zero).
1987 A. Simpson & A. R. Collar Matrices & Engin. Dynamics (BNC) i. 18 A matrix having all its elements zero is said to be null and is written 0.
b. Mathematics and Logic. Of a class or set: having no members; empty. Of a string: containing no characters. Of a propositional function or relation: having the null class as its range.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical number or quantity > numerical arrangement > [adjective] > of sets
tantipartite1858
connected1893
measurable1901
ordered1901
well-ordered1901
null1903
empty1905
closed1909
orthonormal1928
matroid1935
recursively enumerable1936
simple1936
disjoint1937
partially ordered1941
the mind > mental capacity > philosophy > logic > predicate or propositional logic > [adjective] > of a class or set
null1903
1903 B. Russell Princ. Math. ii. 22 A propositional function is said to be null when it is false for all values of x; and the class of x's satisfying the function is called the null-class, being in fact a class of no terms.
1906 W. H. Young & G. C. Young Theory of Sets of Points 288 The null-set..contains no point.
1932 C. I. Lewis & C. H. Langford Symbolic Logic vii. 208 The universal function is expressible as p v ∼ p. The null-function is the negative of this.
1941 O. Helmer tr. A. Tarski Introd. Logic v. 90 We have..in the calculus of relations two special relations, the universal relation ∨ and the null relation ∧, the first of which holds between any two individuals, and the second between none.
1955 A. N. Prior Formal Logic iii. iii. 277 Both the domain and the converse domain of the null relation are the null class.
1966 S. Beer Decision & Control vi. 107 This does not matter; it simply means that the complementary set has no elements—and this is called a null set.
1991 Oxf. Econ. Papers 43 210 The class of reasons..for choosing an option a must not be null.
5. Genetics. Designating, relating to, or possessing a mutant allele that produces no functional gene product.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > biological processes > genetic activity > genetic components > [adjective] > allele > condition with respect to
heterozygous1902
homozygous1902
nulliplex1911
simplex1911
hemizygous1921
quadruplex1923
triallelic1944
heterogenic1947
homogenic1947
null1955
1955 Amer. Naturalist 89 96 Both of these [alleles] mutate to a null a form associated with colorless phenotype.
1971 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 68 145/1 Five null mutants were recovered. These mutants produce no active enzyme in homozygotes.
1985 G. T. Nurse et al. Peoples Southern Afr. vi. 133 Null or very low activity alleles of adenosine deaminase have been found in both San and Negroes.
1993 Nature 29 Apr. 786 The homozygous null mice with no active copies are highly resistant.
6. Linguistics. Designating an empty node in a grammatical structure.
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1964 E. Bach Introd. Transformational Gram. ii. 14 Among the elements assumed to be available for each grammar..there is one which plays a special role, namely, the null (unit or identity) element. It functions in the mathematical system underlying the representations of a grammatical theory as does zero in ordinary addition, or the digit 1 in ordinary multiplication.
1972 R. A. Palmatier Gloss. Eng. Transformational Gram. 111 Null, lacking status as a morpheme or formative—that is, having no overt representation on any level of the grammar.
1989 Amer. Speech 64 306 In GB theory, languages without agreement features are also assumed not to have the PRO/pro distinction made in the identification of null subjects in languages such as Italian, Spanish, and, for that matter, English.
Compounds
null cell n. Medicine and Biology a cell that lacks markers of a certain type; (Immunology) a lymphocyte that lacks the surface markers of B- and T-lymphocytes.
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1972 Immunology 28 719 CRL [sc. Mouse complement receptor lymphocytes] were demonstrated to include immunoglobulin-bearing cells of all the classes and subclasses tested (IgM being the main one), a ‘null’ cell subpopulation, and some T cells.
1995 Clin. Neuropathol. 14 63 A 71-year-old male with a null cell pituitary macroadenoma was given peripituitary region radiotherapy.
null cone n. Physics = light cone n. at light n.1 Compounds 3.
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the world > matter > physics > relativity > space-time > [noun] > conical surface
light cone1921
null cone1925
1925Null cone [see sense 2c].
1968 T. C. Bradbury Theoret. Mech. xiii. 589 Events separated by null vectors can be joined by light signals; in fact, the light cone is frequently called the null cone.
1990 Proc. London Math. Soc. 60 296 z is called a non-zero null vector, and the set of vectors [formula] is called the null cone, and it is denoted by N.
null-G n. and adj. (also null-gee) chiefly Science Fiction = null-grav adj. and n.
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1953 Mag. Fantasy & Sci. Fiction Apr. 84 He had to start from scratch, learning all the null-g and vacuum techniques without another pair of hands nor another brain to help him.
1974 L. Niven & J. Pournelle Mote in God's Eye (1975) iii. xxxi. 316 Null-gee races were a favorite if slightly nonregulation game with midshipmen.
1980 B. W. Aldiss Life in West vi. 117 A whole new nul-g vacuum technology could be developed.
null-grav adj. and n. chiefly Science Fiction (a) adj. (attributive) relating to, producing, or designed for a condition of zero gravity; (b) n. = zero gravity n. and adj. at zero n. and adj. Compounds 2.
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1957 ‘T. Sturgeon’ in Galaxy Sci. Fiction Sept. 13/1 We'd taken off with a null-grav tug and slipped into second-order matrix within six hours—all very fast and painless.
1974 P. Anthony Triple Détente i. 9 Henrys climbed to the null-grav tunnel that passed the full length of the ship.
1985 M. W. Bonanno Dwellers in Crucible i. 10 Lounging around the null-grav pool during their offshift.
1993 J. Mortimore & A. Lane Lucifer Rising (BNC) 197 She hadn't trained in null-grav, that much was obvious.
null hypothesis n. Statistics a hypothesis that is the subject of a significance test, esp. the hypothesis that there is no actual difference between specified populations (any apparent difference being due to sampling or experimental error).
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > probability or statistics > [noun] > significance > subject of
null hypothesis1935
null1967
1935 R. A. Fisher Design Exper. ii. 19 We may speak of this hypothesis as the ‘null hypothesis’, and it should be noted that the null hypothesis is never proved or established, but is possibly disproved, in the course of experimentation.
1973 Jrnl. Genetic Psychol. 123 86 The specific null hypotheses tested were as follows: 1. There were no differences in hostile press (fear of failure) score decreases between self-reinforcement, group therapy, and control groups. 2. Hostile press scores do not decrease significantly during the self-reinforcement condition, [etc.].
1990 Internat. Jrnl. Epidemiol. 19 1108/1 Here, test size is the probability that the null hypothesis will be rejected when there is in fact no association (OR = 1).
null line n. (a) Mechanics and Geometry a line about which the moment of a given torque is zero; (b) Physics a line in space–time representing the path of a light ray, on which any two points have zero interval (interval n. 2c).
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1849 Cambr. & Dublin Math. Jrnl. 4 163 The sum of all the successive lines, including the closing line, will be a null line, because the motion thus conceived would simpy bring a moving point back to its original or initial position.
1906 Trans. Amer. Math. Soc. 7 395 We shall find it convenient to speak, instead of the linear complex, of the screw for which the lines of the linear complex are null lines.
1928 London, Edinb., & Dublin Philos. Mag. 7th Ser. 5 242 A null-surface is defined as an envelope of null-cones,..while the characteristic lines on a null-surface prove to be geodesic null-lines.
1992 Eng. Today Apr. 60/2 Helicity (possibly from Penrose) ‘could be thought of as the “spin” of a massless object such as a twistor, null line or photon of light’.
null lymphocyte n. = null cell n.
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1976 Clin. & Exper. Immunol. 26 478 The distribution of immunoglobulin bearing (Ig+), T, and null lymphocyte subpopulations..were determined in three infants.
1992 Cellular Immunol. 39 218 The findings accord with the hypothesis that the null lymphocyte population produced in mouse bone marrow includes newly formed NK [natural killer] lineage cells.
null modem n. Computing a device used to connect two computers over a short distance so as to allow transfer of information without the use of a modem; frequently attributive.
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1982 Computerworld 22 Mar. 66 Dialup reportedly uses a standard asynchronous terminal line to link its hot system to a remote computer system, either via a telephone line or a null-modem connection (if the systems are close enough together).
1990 M. M. Mirabito & B. Morgenstern New Communications Technol. iii. 44/1 A null modem joins the two machines and makes it possible to exchange data at a rate that far exceeds the standard telephone connection.
1994 Amstrad Action June 13/2 Connect the two machines together with what's known as a ‘null modem cable’.
null plane n. (a) Mechanics and Geometry. [ < German Nullebene (A. F. Möbius Lehrb. der Statik (1837) I. vi. 144)] the plane containing all the null lines of a given torque that pass through a given point; (b) Physics a plane in a complexified space–time, whose real slice is a null line.
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1892 Amer. Jrnl. Math. 14 162 A surface S will be called self-reciprocal in the linear nulsystem, if to every point r of the surface S corresponds a tangent plane ξ of this surface S as nulplane, and inversely.
1902 Encycl. Brit. XXVIII. 660/2 The plane drawn through any point perpendicular to the direction of its motion is its nul-plane with respect to a linear complex having this line for central axis, and the quotient h/w for pitch.
1942 J. L. Synge & B. A. Griffith Princ. Mech. x. 301 A rigid body is acted on by a force F at O and a couple G. P is an assigned point, with position vector r relative to O. Show that there is a single infinity of lines through P about which the force system has no moment; show that these lines lie in a plane... (The lines are called null lines, and the plane a null plane.)
1984 R. Penrose & W. Rindler Spinors & Space-Time I. i. 38 The angle Θ between two null planes with common null vector, say U, can be defined as that between any two non-null vectors, one in each plane.
null-point n. (a) a point associated with or having the value zero, or at which opposing forces cancel each other out; (b) Mechanics and Geometry. [after German Nullpunkt (A. F. Möbius Lehrb. der Statik (1837) I. vi. 144)] the point of intersection of all the null lines of a given torque that lie in a given plane.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > equality or equivalence > [noun] > equilibrium > balancing point
null-point1818
1818 S. T. Coleridge Friend III. i. iv. 150 Confusion and formality are but the opposite poles of the same null-point.
1851 J. P. Nichol Archit. Heavens (ed. 9) 208 The centre of gravity and motion, being the mere point where all opposite tendencies find their balance—the system's null point.
1903 C. M. Jessop Treat. Line Complex iii. 45 The distinction between the two spaces Σ and Σ′ has now disappeared and we have a (1, 1) correspondence between the points and planes of space in which each point lies in its corresponding plane... Such a correspondence is called a null-system. The corresponding points and planes are called ‘null-points’ and ‘null-planes’.
1974 V. B. Mountcastle et al. Med. Physiol. (ed. 13) I. v. 169/1 Diagram summarizing results obtained by means of null-point experiment.
null-space n. Mathematics a space composed of all quantities that are transformed into zero by some given transformation.
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1884 A. Buchheim in London, Edinb., & Dublin Philos. Mag. 5th Ser. 18 459 A linear space of (α−1) dimensions will be called an α-point... A matrix A of order n is considered as operating on the coordinates of the points of an n-point... If A is of nullity α, the equation A(xl…xn) = 0 is satisfied by all the points of a certain α-point, and conversely. I call this α-point the null space of A.
1941 G. Birkhoff & S. MacLane Surv. Mod. Algebra x. 268 The null-space of a linear transformation T is the set of all vectors ξ such that ξT = O. The null-space of a matrix A is the set of all row matrices X which satisfy the homogeneous linear equations XA = O.
1971 C. W. Curtis in M. B. Powell & G. Higman Finite Simple Groups iii. 171 F vanishes on the nullspace of α.
null system n. Mechanics and Geometry a system of null points and their corresponding null planes.
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1902 Amer. Math. Monthly 9 187 Finally the following three papers:..‘Null systems in space of five dimensions’, by Professor John Eisland, Theil College.
1911 Encycl. Brit. XVII. 967/1 In the ‘Null-System’ of A. F. Möbius (1790–1868), a line such that the moment of a given wrench about it is zero is called a null-line.
1964 C. E. Springer Geom. & Anal. Projective Spaces x. 273 In a polar correlation with a skew-symmetric matrix, every point is incident with its corresponding plane. This type of correlation is called a null system, a designation used in the theory of statics as developed by Möbius.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
nullv.1
/nʌl/, U.S. /nəl/ 1. † b. transitive. To deny the validity of. Obsolete. rare.
a. transitive. Chiefly Law (originally Scots Law). To annul, cancel, render void. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > rule of law > illegality > render illegal [verb (transitive)] > deprive of legal validity
abatea1325
squatcha1325
voida1325
allayc1325
annul1395
reverse1395
revokec1400
rupt?a1425
repealc1425
abroge1427
defeat1429
purloin1461
cassa1464
toll1467
resume1472
reprove1479
suspend1488
discharge1495
reduce1498
cassate1512
defease1512
denulla1513
disannula1513
fordoa1513
avoid1514–5
abrogate?1520
frustrate1528
revert1528
disaffirm?1530
extinct1530
resolve1537
null1538
nihilate1545
extinguish1548
elidec1554
revocate1564
annullate1570
squat1577
skaila1583
irritate1605
retex1606
nullify1607
unable1611
refix1621
vitiate1627
invalid1643
vacate1643
unlaw1644
outlaw1647
invalidate1649
disenact1651
vacuate1654
supersedec1674
destroy1805
break1891
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (transitive)] > overthrow or overturn > annul or cancel
null1538
1538 [implied in: 1538 in J. Imrie et al. Burgh Court Bk. Selkirk (1960) 199 Under the payne of forfutting and nulling thaim of thair burgeschip. (at nulling n.1 1)].
1556 Protocol Bk. T. Dalrymple (Edinb. Reg. House) f. 43 The said pretendit assignacioun of the common law is null & na availe and aucht to be nullit.
1617–18 in D. Masson Reg. Privy Council Scotl. (1894) 1st Ser. XI. 396 Unles he causit the said testament ather to be nullit or reformit to his contentment.
1643 Richlieu's Epit. in Harl. Misc. (Malh.) V. 333 Lest he should spare her, when she was dead, he nulled her last will.
1664 in G. Miege Relation of Three Embassies (1669) 255 They affirm that his..Royal majesty..desired that the Privileges might be nulled.
1693 J. Norris Pract. Disc. Divine Subj. III. 129 God forbid that such a Law should ever be null'd or made void.
a1716 O. Blackall Wks. (1723) I. xxx. 294 Because these Marriages had been made before the Law against them was given,..it was not reasonable that they would be null'd.
a1797 E. Burke Ess. Abridgm. Eng. Hist. (rev. ed.) in Wks. (1812) V. 691 The first election he nulled, because its irregularity was glaring.
1827 L. E. Landon Golden Violet 85 Out on the heartless creed which nulls the claim Upon the heart of kindred, birth, and name.
1869 J. Doran Table Traits (ed. 4) 384 A particular act of their worships..nulled the proclamation.
1987 N. Spinrad Little Heroes 255 We've got Red Jack discs for cash machines, for improving your grades..for nulling parking tickets, and much, much more, and we're writing more every day.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > rule of law > illegality > render illegal [verb (transitive)] > deprive of legal validity > deny the validity of
quash?a1400
disable1548
infirm1558
overrule1611
null1656
to set aside1765
to strike down1894
1656 R. Baxter Gildas Salvianus I. vi. 338 I speak not this against any Bishops that acknowledge the Presbyters to be true Pastors..but of them that null the Presbyters office.
1684 R. Baxter Whether Parish Congregations 32 They null not the Parochial Pastorship.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > existence > non-existence > be non-existent [verb (transitive)] > make negative
nullc1620
the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > other grammatical categories or concepts > use other category or concept [verb (transitive)] > render negative
nullc1620
negate1880
c1620 A. Hume Of Orthogr. Britan Tongue (1870) ii. xi. §8 Not is an adverb,..and in our tong followes the verb that it nulleth.
3. transitive. To reduce to nothing, annihilate; to destroy or efface completely. Now rare (literary in later use).Common in 17th cent.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (transitive)] > annihilate or blot out of existence
dilghec897
defacec1386
annul1395
anientec1400
refer?c1400
extinct1484
annihil1490
delete1495
out-terma1500
perspoil1523
extaintc1540
extinguish1555
blot1561
wipe1564
to cut the throat of1565
annihilate1567
dissipatea1575
annihilate1586
nullify1609
nullize1615
expunge1628
nothing1637
null1647
extramund1654
be-nothing1674
erase1728
obliterate1798
simoom1821
to tear to shreds1837
snuff1852
mop1859
to take out1900
napoo1915
naught1958
1647 J. Howell New Vol. of Lett. 169 I believe [not]..that she was able to null and extinguish the native languages she found in those places.
a1691 R. Boyle Gen. Hist. Air (1692) 69 These objections..do not really null or take away the possibility of the thing.
1702 S. Parker tr. Cicero Five Bks. De Finibus v. 356 In a manner to null and erase their very Being.
1824 J. Mactaggart Sc. Gallovidian Encycl. (1876) 113 The eater nulls the hearty lunch.
1840 Defoe's Col. Jack in Misc. Wks. V. 342 He does all he can to null or quash the story.
1880 R. W. Dixon Story of Eudocia 35 My very sentence in his death appears, And nulls the grace that thou bringest to my ears.
1946 J. Masefield Gautama 15 All who love books must love the Binder's skill That fights all foes that work a volume ill, That slays the boring worm and nulls the fox.
4. transitive. To cancel out or remove (a force, effect, signal, etc.); to reduce or set to zero. Also with out.
ΚΠ
1911 Bot. Gaz. 51 474 ‘Critical time’ is the least exposure that is not entirely nulled by an opposite and immediately following exposure of equal length.
1957 Electronics 1 Mar. 163 The receiver uses a shielded-loop antenna to null out main powerline noise.
1968 Science 13 Aug. 715/1 Such a gyro operates by nulling the torques applied about its output axis.
1971 Sci. Amer. Aug. 65/2 The harmonic signal is electronically processed and sent through the feedback winding to ‘null out’, or cancel, the ambient field within the sensor.
2000 Sci. Amer. Mar. 76/1 The instrument was properly nulled with additional magnets to cancel the earth's average magnetic field.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† nullv.2
Obsolete. rare. Apparently only attested in dictionaries or glossaries.
intransitive. Of a line: to kink.
ΚΠ
1890 Cent. Dict. Null, To kink: said of a whalemen's line as it runs from the line-tub.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
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n.11605
n.2a1809
adj.1450v.11538
v.21890