The word is “aught,” which can be “anything whatever” (as in “for aught I know”) or “a zero.”

The zero connection came from the faulty separation of “a naught” into “an aught.” “Naught” is a spelling variation of the first zero in this family, “nought.”

By the way, the adjective “naughty,” also part of this family, used to mean “wicked; bad; evil.” Then it became not behaving properly, especially as applied to children.

The ...

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The “auk,” a diving shorebird of the northern seas and a friend of crossword puzzle fans everywhere. Its name was inspired by the noise it makes.

An “aunt.” This word was derived from the Middle English and Old French “aunte,” which came from the Latin “amita” for paternal aunt. And that was a form of “amma,” baby talk for “mother.”

By the way, the preferred American pronunciation is the same as the name of the bug, “ant.” ...

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The most obvious is “augment,” which also means to increase, enlarge, strengthen.

Less obvious are “authority” and “auction.” The former traveled the same route as “author,” which I wrote about previously. “Authority” is the power or right to be in charge, and also can be a knowledgeable and reliable source for information.

For “auction,” its immediate ancestor was the Latin “auctio,” meaning “an increasing” and specifically “sale by increase of bids” — which is pretty much what an auction is.

A word that might seem ...

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The word traces back to the Latin “auctor,” which also meant “enlarger.” That was rooted in the verb “augere” — “to increase.”

Webster’s also includes “author” as a verb for “to be an author of.” This conversion of a noun into a verb is a process that almost always encounters resistance among the guardians of style. The Associated Press Stylebook, for example, prohibits the use of “author” as a verb.

“Garner’s Modern American Usage” is more reasonable, acknowledging that ...

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An “autocracy” is the type in which “one person has absolute power.” This is also known as “dictatorship” or “despotism.”

More generally, “autocrat” can be applied to “any domineering, self-willed person.”

Here’s one that was new to me: the adjective “autocephalous.” The combining form “cephalo-” and its variations mean “the head, skull or brain,” but in this case it refers to the head of a church.

“Certain churches within the communion of the Eastern Orthodox Church,” says Webster’s, are called “autocephalous” — “self-governing; independent.”

And then there are “autarchy” and ...

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The first is “autism,” which Webster’s defines as “a developmental disorder characterized variously by impaired social interaction, difficulties in communicating, problems with seeing and hearing, repetitive behavior, etc.”

The unabridged Webster’s says it’s “absorption in self-centered subjective mental activity ( as daydreams, fantasies, delusions and hallucinations), especially when accompanied by marked withdrawal from reality.”

It’s a form of being stuck in one’s own little world. Any way you look at it, that’s a ton of stuff to ...

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The term “automatic” comes from the Greek “automatos” for “self-moving, self-thinking.” In most cases, automatic operations and devices save time, require less effort on our part and improve our standard of living.

There is a sense in which “automatic” can be troubling, and that’s in its first definition: “done without conscious thought or volition, as if mechanically.”

In extreme cases, a person can appear to become an “automaton” — “acting in an automatic or mechanical way.” Another word for this ...

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Other “auto-” terms (from the Greek “autos” for “self”) involving motor vehicles are “autobus,” usually just called a “bus” now; “automaker,” which refers to a company that makes such vehicles; “autoworker,” one of the people who actually do the making; “autobahn,” an expressway in Germany and Austria; and “autostrada,” an expressway in Italy.

Among other products of “automation” are such self-operating machines and devices as ...

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The first is the German “auf Wiedersehen,” which is the same type of farewell phrase as “au revoir.” It basically means “until we see each other again.”

And what would New Year’s celebrations be without “auld lang syne”? In Scottish, it’s literally “old long since.” We use it to convey “old times; the good old days (of one’s youth, etc.)” Happy new year?

Finally, a bit of unsavory history. “Auto-da-fe,” literally “act of the faith” in Portuguese, was “the public ceremony in which ...

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“Au revoir” is the kind of parting phrase that indicates a temporary separation, more like “until we meet again.” The “revoir” portion in French means “seeing again.”

Also in this nonfood phrase group is “au courant,” for “fully informed on current matters; up-to-date” (in French, “with the current”).

Then there’s “au naturel,” which we usually associate with “naked.” But it also can mean “in the natural state,” which doesn’t necessarily involve nudity, and “cooked or served simply” (there’s that food angle again).

Finally, we have “au pair.” In French, ...

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