English words starting with N

165 words, from Naan to Nutritious. Levels A1 to C2. Each one opens a full lesson.

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Naannoun · A soft, slightly puffy flatbread, often served with curry.B1 Nadirnoun · The lowest point of a process, career, or mood (formal).C2 Naffadjective · Unfashionable or of poor taste (UK informal).B1 Nailnoun · The hard part at the end of a finger or toe.A1 Nakedadjective · Not wearing clothes; also not covered or hidden (a naked flame; the naked truth).B1 Namenoun · The word that someone or something is called.A1 Name Tagnoun · A small label that shows a person’s name, often sewn into clothes or worn on a lanyard.B1 Namelyadverb · Used to introduce the exact names or details of what you have just mentioned.C1 Nannynoun · A person whose job is to look after children in their home.A1 Napkinnoun · A piece of cloth or paper you use to keep your mouth and hands clean at a meal.A1 Nappynoun · A piece of cloth or paper a baby wears (British).A1 Narcissismnoun · Excessive love of oneself or of one’s image (formal / psychology).C2 Narrativenoun · A spoken or written account of connected events; also the way a story is told.B2 Narrowadjective · Measuring a small distance from one side to the other; not wide.A1 Nascentadjective · Just beginning to exist or develop.C2 Nastyadjective · Unpleasant, unkind, or likely to hurt.A2 Nationnoun · A country and the people who live there.A2 Nationaladjective · Relating to a whole country.A2 Nationalitynoun · The legal status of belonging to a particular country.A2 Nationwideadjective · Happening or existing in every part of a country.B2 Nativeadjective · Connected with the place where you were born.A2 Nattyadjective · Smart, neat, and fashionable, especially of clothes or appearance (informal).C2 Naturaladjective · Existing in nature, not made by people; also expected or normal (a natural talent).B2 Naturallyadverb · In a normal or expected way; also without chemicals or extra help.A2 Naturenoun · The physical world of plants, animals, and the countryside.A2 Navynoun · The part of a country’s military that fights at sea.A2 Nearpreposition · A short distance from.A1 Nearbyadverb · Not far away; close to this place.A2 Nearlyadverb · Almost, but not completely.A2 Neatadjective · Tidy and carefully arranged.A2 Nebulousadjective · Not clear or exact; vague, like a cloud (formal).C2 Necessarilyadverb · In a way that must be true or must happen; not necessarily means “not automatically”.B1 Necessaryadjective · Needed; you cannot do without it.A2 Necessitynoun · The need for something; also something you must have.B2 Necknoun · The part of the body that joins the head to the shoulders.A1 Necklacenoun · Jewellery you wear around your neck.A1 Needverb · To require something because it is necessary.A1 Needlenoun · A thin, sharp piece of metal used for sewing or giving injections.A2 Nefariousadjective · Criminal or morally very bad.C2 Negativeadjective · Bad, harmful, or saying no.B1 Neglectverb · To not give enough care or attention to someone or something.B2 Negligibleadjective · So small or unimportant that it can be ignored.C1 Negotiateverb · To discuss something in order to reach an agreement.B2 Negotiationnoun · Formal discussion aimed at reaching an agreement (often plural: negotiations).B2 Neighbournoun · A person who lives near you.A2 Neighbourhoodnoun · A district of a town where people live, and the people who live there (UK spelling).B1 Neitherdeterminer · Not one and not the other of two: Neither answer is right. Neither of us went.A1 Nemesisnoun · A long-standing rival who brings defeat; also inescapable retribution (literary).C2 Neologismnoun · A newly invented word or expression.C2 Neophytenoun · A person new to a skill, job, or belief (formal).C2 Nephewnoun · The son of your brother or sister.A1 Nepotismnoun · Unfair advantage given to relatives, especially in jobs.C2 Nervenoun · Courage in a difficult situation; also a fibre that carries messages in the body; nerves means anxiety.B1 Nervousadjective · Worried or slightly afraid about something that is going to happen.A2 Nestnoun · A home that a bird builds for its eggs and young.A2 Netnoun · Open material of string or wire with holes, used in sport or to catch things.A1 Netheradjective · Lower; at the bottom (literary: nether world, nether regions).C2 Nettleverb · To annoy or provoke someone (often be nettled).C2 Networknoun · A system of connected people, organisations, or equipment; also who you know professionally.B2 Neutraladjective · Not supporting either side in a disagreement or war.B2 Neveradverb · Not at any time.A1 Neverthelessadverb · In spite of that; however.B2 Newadjective · Not used or known before.A1 Newlyadverb · Recently; a short time ago.A2 Newsnoun · New information about recent events.A2 Newsagentnoun · A shop that sells newspapers, magazines, sweets, and often tickets (UK).B1 Newspapernoun · A set of large printed pages with news, sold each day or week.A1 Nextadjective · Coming immediately after this one.A1 Nexusnoun · A central connection, or a linked series of connections (formal).C2 Niceadjective · Pleasant or kind.A1 Nicetynoun · A fine detail or distinction; also a refined point of manners.C2 Nichenoun · A specialised segment of a market, or a role that fits someone unusually well.C1 Nicknamenoun · An informal name used instead of someone’s real name.B1 Niecenoun · The daughter of your brother or sister.A1 Nightnoun · The time when it is dark and most people sleep.A1 Nightclubnoun · A place open late where people dance and drink.B1 Nightmarenoun · A very frightening dream; also a very bad experience.A2 Nihilismnoun · The belief that life is without meaning, or that moral values have no basis (formal).C2 Ninenumber · The number 9.A1 Nineteennumber · The number 19.A1 Ninetynumber · The number 90.A1 Noexclamation · Used to refuse, or to say that something is not true.A1 Nobodypronoun · No person; not anyone.A2 Nodverb · To move your head up and down to say yes or show you agree.A2 Noisenoun · A sound, especially a loud or unpleasant one.A2 Noisomeadjective · Very unpleasant, especially of a smell; also harmful (literary).C2 Noisyadjective · Full of noise, or making too much noise.A1 Nomadicadjective · Moving from place to place rather than staying settled, of people or work.C2 Nomenclaturenoun · A system of names used in a science, field, or organisation (formal).C2 Nominaladjective · In name only, or very small compared with the real value; also, a stated figure before adjustment.C1 Nominateverb · To officially suggest someone for a job, prize, or election.B2 Nominationnoun · The act of officially naming someone as a candidate for a job, prize, or election.B1 Non Sequiturnoun · A remark or conclusion that does not follow from what came before (formal).C2 Non-Committaladjective · Not expressing a clear opinion, preference, or decision.C2 Nonchalantadjective · Calm and apparently unconcerned, sometimes too casually.C2 Nonconformistnoun · A person who does not follow accepted beliefs or practices (also adjective; from rebel, already in the dictionary).C1 Nondescriptadjective · Lacking distinctive features; dull and hard to describe.C2 Nonepronoun · Not any; not one.A2 Nonentitynoun · A person or thing of no importance or distinction (disapproving).C2 Nonethelessadverb · In spite of what has just been said.C1 Nonpareiladjective · Without equal; better than all others of the kind (literary / formal).C2 Nonplussedadjective · So surprised or confused that you do not know how to react (UK).C2 Nonsensenoun · Ideas or words that are silly or not true.A2 Noodlenoun · A long thin piece of food made from flour, often eaten in soup.A1 Noonnoun · Twelve o’clock in the day.A1 Norconjunction · Used after neither, or after a negative, to add another negative idea.A2 Normnoun · The usual or accepted way of behaving or of doing something.B2 Normaladjective · Usual; what you expect.A2 Normallyadverb · Usually; in the usual way.A2 Northnoun · The direction towards the top of most maps.A1 Northernadjective · In or from the north of a place.A2 Nosenoun · The part of the face you smell with.A1 Noshnoun · Food, especially a snack or a meal (UK informal, often uncountable).B1 Nostalgianoun · A sentimental longing for a past time (from memory and longing, already in the dictionary).C1 Nostrumnoun · A favourite, often dubious, remedy or scheme (formal / disapproving).C2 Notadverb · Used to make a verb or adjective negative.A1 Notableadjective · Important, interesting, or unusual enough to be noticed.B2 Notablyadverb · In a way that is worth mentioning; especially.C1 Notationnoun · A system of written symbols for numbers, music, or scientific ideas.B2 Notchnoun · A V-shaped cut; also a level on a scale (a notch above).B2 Notebooknoun · A small book of blank pages for writing notes.A1 Nothingpronoun · Not anything; no thing.A1 Noticeverb · To see or become aware of something.A2 Noticeboardnoun · A board where notices and messages are pinned up (UK; US bulletin board).B1 Notifyverb · To tell someone officially about something.C1 Notionnoun · An idea or belief, often not fully proven.B2 Notionaladjective · Existing only as an idea or on paper; not actual (formal).C2 Notoriousadjective · Famous for something bad.B2 Notwithstandingpreposition · In spite of (formal); also used after the noun it governs.C1 Noughtnumber · The number 0 (UK; US zero).B1 Nourishverb · To give food or other things needed for growth and health; also to keep a feeling or idea alive.C1 Nourishmentnoun · Food or other things needed for health and growth (usually uncountable).B2 Nousnoun · Practical intelligence; common sense (UK).C2 Novelnoun · A long written story about people and events that are not real.A2 Novelistnoun · A person who writes novels.A2 Noveltynoun · The quality of being new and unusual; also a cheap unusual toy.C1 Novembernoun · The eleventh month of the year.A1 Novicenoun · A person who is new to a skill, job, or activity.B2 Nowadverb · At the present time.A1 Nowadaysadverb · At the present time, compared with the past.A2 Nowhereadverb · Not in or to any place.A2 Noxiousadjective · Harmful, poisonous, or morally corrupting (formal).C2 Nuancenoun · A small difference in meaning, feeling, or colour.C1 Nubnoun · The central and most important point of a matter.C2 Nuclearadjective · Connected with energy from splitting atoms, or with nuclear weapons.A2 Nucleusnoun · The central part of an atom or a cell; also the core of a group (plural: nuclei).B2 Nudgeverb · To push gently; also to influence behaviour with a small prompt (a nudge).B2 Nugatoryadjective · Worthless; of no real value, force, or effect (formal).C2 Nulladjective · Having no legal or statistical force; containing nothing (a null result; null and void).B2 Nullifyverb · To make something legally or practically of no effect.C2 Numbernoun · A word or symbol that shows an amount, such as 1, 2, 3.A1 Number Platenoun · The sign on a vehicle that shows its registration number (UK; US license plate).B1 Numberplatenoun · The sign on a vehicle that shows its registration number (UK; also number plate; US license plate).B1 Numericaladjective · To do with numbers rather than words (numerical data; a numerical majority).B2 Numerousadjective · Very many (more formal than many).B2 Numinousadjective · Suggesting a mysterious spiritual presence or awe (literary / formal).C2 Nuptialadjective · Relating to marriage or a wedding (formal / literary).C2 Nursenoun · A person whose job is to care for people who are ill.A2 Nurserynoun · A place where young children are looked after while parents work; also a plant shop.A2 Nursingnoun · The job or study of caring for people who are ill (often uncountable).B1 Nurtureverb · To care for and help someone or something develop.C1 Nutnoun · A hard fruit with a shell that you can eat.A1 Nutrientnoun · A substance in food that plants or animals need to live and grow.B2 Nutritionnoun · The food your body needs to stay healthy, or the study of that food.A2 Nutritiousadjective · Containing the things your body needs to stay healthy.A2