2 syllables: Nought, ies. Stress on Nought.
NAW-tiz
/ˈnɔːtɪz/
Noughties is pronounced NAW-tiz (/ˈnɔːtɪz/). It has two syllables (Nought-ies), with the stress on "Nought". Noughties is a plural noun referring to the decade spanning approximately 2000–2009, or, informally, the early 2000s. It is used in British English and occasionally in other varieties when discussing fashion, music, or cultural trends of that period. It contrasts with the 'nineties' or 'twenties' for other decades and may be heard in colloquial speech and media coverage.
nounNoughties is a plural noun referring to the decade spanning approximately 2000–2009, or, informally, the early 2000s. It is used in British English and occasionally in other varieties when discussing fashion, music, or cultural trends of that period. It contrasts with the 'nineties' or 'twenties' for other decades and may be heard in colloquial speech and media coverage.
"The noughties saw a rise in digital cameras and early smartphones."
"Fashion from the noughties often features low-rise jeans and neon colors."
"In the noughties, MP3 players became widely popular."
Pronounce as NOUGHT-ies with primary stress on NOUGHT. IPA: US/UK/AU /ˈnɔː.tiz/. Start with the open back rounded vowel /ɔː/ as in 'thought,' then move to a crisp /t/ followed by a reduced /ɪ/ or schwa in rapid speech before the final /z/ or /s/ depending on liaison. In careful speech, the final is /iː/ plus /z/: /ˈnɔː.tiz/. In fluent speech, the vowel may be shorter and the final may sound like /z/. Listen to native speakers and mimic the tongue position: low-mid back tongue for /ɔː/, voiceless alveolar stop /t/ (voicing quickly released), and voiced alveolar fricative /z/ at the end. Audio resources like Pronounce or Forvo can help with the long-vowel realization.
Common mistakes include misplacing the primary stress (say NOO-ties instead of NOUGH-ties), incorrectly rounding the /ɔː/ to a shorter /ɒ/ or /ɔ/ in some accents, and finishing with a voiceless /s/ instead of a voiced /z/. Correct by maintaining the long /ɔː/ in the first syllable, ensuring the /t/ is released clearly, and voicing the final consonant /z/. Practice with minimal pairs like ‘naughty’ to refine the tongue posture and ensure the final z-sound is audibly voiced.
US tends to have a slightly tenser /ɔː/ in affected vowels and is often rhotic in broader speech; the final /z/ remains voiced. UK pronunciation features a longer, rounded /ɔː/ with clear /t/ release, and typically a voiced final /z/; some speakers may exhibit a lighter terminal /z/ in rapid speech. Australian English resembles UK on the vowel quality but can be less rhotic, with slightly flatter vowels. In all, the core is /ˈnɔː.tiz/ with minor vowel length and rhoticity variations across regions.
Two challenges: the long /ɔː/ vowel and the final voiced /z/. The long back vowel can be misarticulated as /ɒ/ (as in ‘cot’) or shortened in fast speech, which changes the word’s feel. The final /z/ requires maintaining voicing without devoicing in connected speech; trailing /z/ can blur when linked to a following vowel. Practice careful tongue retraction for /ɔː/, a clean alveolar plosive /t/ release, and a steady, voiced /z/ in final position to stabilize this sound.
Yes—stress is unambiguous on the first syllable, but the vowel in the first syllable carries the crux: /ɔː/ is a mid-to-back rounded vowel that can vary with dialect. The second syllable is unstressed but should be clearly voiced in fast speech to avoid sounding like ‘naughtys’ or ‘naughties’ with a silent second syllable. Ensure the /t/ is released before the final /z/ and maintain a smooth transition between syllables for natural rhythm.
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Noughties is a blend built from the British English term nought, meaning zero or nothing, and ties, a plural suffix implying a decade period as with the nineties. The root nought traces to Old English na-wiht or na-þing (nothing), evolving into naught, nought, and finally nought in modern spelling. The construction —ies marks a colloquial plural for a span of years (the tens, the twenties). The earliest attachments of nought to decades appeared in British media and colloquial speech in the late 20th century, becoming conventional by the early 2000s as people discussed the next decade-to-come. The form mirrors similar coinages such as “nineties” and “eighties,” but with the vowel shift in “nought” aligning with British pronunciation. The semantic use solidified around cultural references to the decade’s distinctive trends rather than a precise date range, which is why you may see 1999–2009 boundaries in casual speech. First known written appearances show up in British newspapers and lifestyle magazines around the late 1990s, with rapid adoption in 2000–2002 as the media began often labeling the decade in retrospective features. In short, noughties encapsulates a British-English, culture-forward label for the decade spanning the early 2000s, built from the zero/nought root and the plural s-tie suffix.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Noughties" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "Noughties" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "Noughties"
-ies sounds
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