no man noun Etymology: Middle English no man, naman, non man, nan man, from Old English nān man, from nān no, none + man — more at none 1.: no person : nobody 2.usuallyno-man\ˈ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷\[no (II) + man]: a man who is accustomed or inclined to disagree in an independent manner or to decline requests in a firm resolute way < surrounded by a number of no-men to resist me at every point — Sir Winston Churchill > — compare yes-man