Word Confusion: None versus Nun

Posted February 27, 2017 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

This word confusion pair is an heterograph that confounds writers who aren’t paying attention. We can’t have nun, er, none of this. Even the nones would be . . . I mean, the nuns from parochial school would be most upset.

Nosiree, the nuns would have none of this misspelling or the context confusions allowed.

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Exploring Later . . .

You may want to explore “None Is vs None Are” and/or “Neither Is vs Neither Are“.

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Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

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None	Nun
Rowan-Berry Vodka from Jan Muszynsk is Szczebrzeszynski’s own work and is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. — There’s none left . . .	Recollect Contemplative Nuns is Asolrac1’s own work under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.
Part of Grammar:
Adjective ¹; Adverb ¹; Noun ²; Proper noun ²; Pronoun ¹ Plural for noun: nones	Noun Plural: nuns
Adjective: [Archaic; usually used only before a vowel or h] Not any ¹ No Adverb: none the (with comparative) By no amount ¹ Not at all In no way To no extent Noun: A service forming part of the Divine Office of the Western Christian Church, traditionally said (or chanted) at the ninth hour of the day (3 p.m.) ² Plural Noun: In the ancient Roman calendar, the ninth day before the ides by inclusive reckoning ² Pronoun: Not any ¹ No person No one Not one No part Nothing [Used with a plural verb] No or not any persons or things	A member of a religious community of women, especially a cloistered one, living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience Any of a number of birds whose plumage resembles a nun’s habit A pigeon of a breed with a crest on its neck
Examples:
Adjective: Thou shalt have none other gods but me. “While none listed specific problems, several said neighbors did not like the proposal” (Sikich). “He has the best clothes, bar none” (What). Adverb: It is made none the easier by the differences in approach. You look none the worse for wear. They’ll be none the wiser for being told, so leave it alone. That was none too soon. The supply is none too great. Noun: We’re expected at nones. “The Greek monks always listen to their reader recite Psalms 83, 84, and 85 from the Septuagint at nones” (Nones). Plural Noun: “Those months that have 4 nones after the kalends . . . have 13 days to the ides and eighteen to the second kalends” (Byrhtferð, vol 1, chapt 2, sec 22). January, Sextilis, and December, they still have their Nones on the fifth (Macrobius, vol 1, chapt 14, sect 8). Pronoun: None of you want to work. Don’t use any more water, or there’ll be none left for me. None could match her looks. None of the pie is left. That is none of your business. None of the members is going. I’ll have none of your backtalk! I left three pies on the table and now there are none. None were left when I came.	Nuns were strict when Mary attended parochial school. The rules about wearing the habit have been relaxed for nuns. Margaret Frazer’s Dame Frevisse series is about a detecting nun in the mid-1400s. This feisty Irish nun-cum-lawyer-cum-princess from the 600s, Sister Fidelma, by Peter Tremayne, is a hot one who stands up for her rights. The Asian mannikin is said to look like a nun. “The Nun pigeon is a domesticated fancy breed that has developed after years of careful selective breeding” (NANunME).
Derivatives:
	Adjective: nunlike, nunnish
History of the Word:
From Old English nān, from ne meaning not + ān meaning one is of Germanic origin. Mid-19th century from French, which is from the Latin nona, a feminine singular of nonus meaning ninth.	From Old English nonne, from the ecclesiastical Latin nonna, the feminine of nonnus meaning monk is reinforced by the Old French nonne.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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Resources for None versus Nun

Some of these links may be affiliate links, and I will earn a small percentage, if you should buy it. It does not affect the price you pay.

Apple Dictionary.com

Byrhtferð of Ramsey. Manual (Enchiridion). Originally published c. 970 CE. Ashmolean MS 328. Oxford: Bodleian Library. <https://medieval.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/catalog/work_1178>. Codex.

Dictionary.com: none

Macrobius. Robert A. Kaster (trans.) Originally published c. 431 CE. Harvard University Press, 2011. Saturnalia. <https://amzn.to/3FHVvFq>.

Merriam-Webster: none

“Nones.” Wiktionary. 14 Oct 2022. Web. 10 Dec 2022. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nones#Noun>.

“The Nun Pigeon: Breed Guide.” PigeonPedia. <https://pigeonpedia.com/nun-pigeon/>.

Sikich, Chris. “Westfield Rejects Swanky Golf Course Development.” Indianapolis Star. 9 May 2017. Web. 10 Dec 2022. <https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/hamilton-county/2017/05/09/westfield-rejects-swanky-golf-course-development/101424744/>.

“What Does Bar None Mean?” Writing Explained. n.d. Web. 10 Dec 2022. <https://writingexplained.org/idiom-dictionary/bar-none>.

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