ought1
/ɔːt
/modal verb (third singular present and past ought) [with infinitive]
1Used to indicate duty or correctness, typically when criticizing someone’s actions: they ought to respect the law thanks for your letter which I ought to have answered sooner...
- As former British countries got their independence, then there was a feeling of duty that we ought to do something to help.
- I mean, they are doing yeoman duty and we ought to thank every one of them for putting their lives on the line.
- It happened at a time when he was serving his country, and he served it very ably and very well, as a volunteer in the Navy SEALS, and we ought to respect that.
1.1Used to indicate a desirable or expected state: he ought to be able to take the initiative...
- At the same time, surely we ought to expect at least some standard of rationality from our governors.
- My legs are not so cold now, though they probably ought to be.
- That's a job for the public-relations experts: They can explain away operations that probably ought to be changed.
1.2Used to give or ask for advice: you ought to go what ought I to do?...
- My personal advice is they ought to take a hard look at the situation they are in, and it would be probably better for them to start leaving or making plans to leave.
- Wherever you're fishing in Denmark, you really ought to get hands-on advice at one or both of the excellent tackle shops in central Copenhagen.
- I think that member ought to take the advice of his own leader.
2Used to indicate something that is probable: five minutes ought to be enough time...
- I figured that 20 minutes ought to be enough to keep her off my back.
- More than five years ought to be enough time.
- That ought to do the work.
Usage
The verb ought is a modal verb and this means that, grammatically, it does not behave like ordinary verbs. In particular, the negative is formed with the word not alone and not also with auxiliary verbs such as do or have. Thus the standard construction for the negative is he ought not to have gone. The alternative forms he didn’t ought to have gone and he hadn’t ought to have gone, formed as if ought were an ordinary verb rather than a modal verb, are found in dialect from the 19th century but are not acceptable in standard modern English.
Origin
Old English āhte, past tense of āgan 'owe' (see owe).
Rhymes
ought2
/ɔːt/(also aught)
noun
Archaic term for nought.For aught that I can tell, it went really well, particularly after I got on to the second roll, which I used to shoot, among other things, the crowd of avid onlookers for whom the result of the match seemed to matter so much....
- If aught else were said we should only be laughed at.
- The old saying is probably right: you don't get aught for naught.
Origin
Mid 19th century: perhaps from an ought, by wrong division of a nought; compare with adder1.
ought3
pronoun
Variant spelling of aught1.
- well-farmed
- well-fashioned
- well-fatted
- well favored
- well favoured
- well-favouredness
- well-feasted
- well-feathered
- well-featured
- well fed
- well-feed
- well-feeding
- well-feigned
- well-fenced
- well-fermented
- well-filed
- well-filled
- well-finished
- well-fitted
- well fitting
- well-fixed
- well-flavored
- well-flavoured
- well-fledged
- well-fleeced