What does nowhere mean?
Word: Nowhere
Part of Speech: Adverb
Meaning: Nowhere means not in any place or to any place.
Synonyms: no place, not anywhere
Antonyms: everywhere
How do you spell nowhere?
Syllables: no - where
Tricky part: The h after the w is silent, so many students leave it out and write nowere.
Watch out for: nowere, nowhear, nowher
Memory tip: Like when, which and white, nowhere has an h straight after its w that you never hear.
Idioms and Phrases
- in the middle of nowhere: In a lonely place far from towns and people. Example: "Our bus broke down in the middle of nowhere, with only fields around us."
- out of nowhere: Suddenly and without warning. Example: "A cyclist appeared out of nowhere and rang his bell."
Nowhere in a sentence
Example 1: I looked for my geometry box, but it was nowhere in my bag.
Example 2: With the gate locked, the stray calf had nowhere to go.
Example 3: We are getting nowhere with this puzzle; let us try again after lunch.
Fun Fact
Utopia, the name Thomas More gave to his imaginary perfect island in 1516, is built from Greek words meaning 'no place' - in other words, nowhere.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Makeup
Choose the correctly spelt compound word:
a) wherebye
b) nowhere
c) nevertheles
d) hencefourth
Show answer
b) nowhere. Nowhere joins no and where cleanly; the others should be nevertheless, henceforth and whereby.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word nowhere as it is used in the sentence:
My cricket ball was nowhere in the garden, so I went up to look on the terrace.
a) overhead
b) elsewhere
c) outside
d) somewhere
Show answer
d) somewhere. Nowhere means in no place at all; somewhere means in some place, so it is the opposite here.
Spell-o-Spell
Three words in the list are spelt correctly and one is misspelt. Choose the meaning of the misspelt word.
1. meanwhile 2. wherever 3. nowhere 4. altogther
a) completely; in every way
b) in no place, or to no place
c) in any place at all
d) while something else is happening
Show answer
a) completely; in every way. Altogether keeps the e of together; nowhere, meanwhile and wherever are all spelt correctly.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
Our kitten was rewhoen to be found until we heard her mewing from inside the cupboard.
a) somewhere
b) nowhere
c) nowadays
d) anywhere
Show answer
b) nowhere. Somewhere and anywhere need letters such as s, m, a and y, and nowadays needs a d; the seven jumbled letters spell nowhere.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Someone who is getting nowhere with a task is ____.
a) working very fast
b) asking for help
c) making no progress
d) leaving the house
Show answer
c) making no progress
2. If there is nowhere to sit at a wedding, ____.
a) the chairs are all empty
b) there are too many chairs
c) every chair is already taken
d) you are sitting near the stage
Show answer
c) every chair is already taken
