"noughties" means: The decade consisting of the last year of the previous century and the first nine years of the next: from 1900 to 1909, 2000 to 2009, etc.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
noughties
(chiefly, UK, sometimes, capitalized) The decade consisting of the last year of the previous century and the first nine years of the next: from 1900 to 1909, 2000 to 2009, etc.
Seen in the wild
Mine is thus: there has been no legitimately good horror movie since the noughties, with the exception of 28 years later (I've yet to see part 2) P.s. There have been plenty of good horror series. The distinction is…
I feel like we jumped from mass ‘80s nostalgia to mass noughties nostalgia without stopping to enjoy the correct thing (mass ‘90s nostalgia)
OH RIGHT, I forgot about those absurd Noughties phone texting rates…
Definitions
(chiefly, UK, sometimes, capitalized) The decade consisting of the last year of the previous century and the first nine years of the next: from 1900 to 1909, 2000 to 2009, etc.
"noughties" means: The decade consisting of the last year of the previous century and the first nine years of the next: from 1900 to 1909, 2000 to 2009, etc.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
"noughties" means: The decade consisting of the last year of the previous century and the first nine years of the next: from 1900 to 1909, 2000 to 2009, etc.. Register: neutral, standard English, usable in most everyday contexts. Note the regional or dialect label (UK) — usage may sound odd outside that variety. A common non-native mistake is to use the word in the wrong register, or to assume one fixed meaning when it is actually polysemous; always check the surrounding register and the audience before producing it yourself. In formal writing, prefer a neutral synonym or a short descriptive phrase, and use this word only when you have heard or read it being used
“Mine is thus: there has been no legitimately good horror movie since the noughties, with the exception of 28 years later (I've yet to see part 2) P.s. There have been plenty of good horror series. The distinction is small, but relevant”
— Bluesky· May 2026“I feel like we jumped from mass ‘80s nostalgia to mass noughties nostalgia without stopping to enjoy the correct thing (mass ‘90s nostalgia)”
— Bluesky· May 2026“OH RIGHT, I forgot about those absurd Noughties phone texting rates…”
— Bluesky· May 2026
Comments
For specific readers
Why is this section here?
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
Used in
Have a better definition?
Add your own interpretation of "noughties".
🇬🇧About British & Irish slang slang
UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.
See all British & Irish slang slang on Slangora.
Tags
Other words near "noughties" (N)
Browse all slang words starting with N.
Related terms
People also read
Semantically related
- Naughty Nineties60%
A British nickname for the 1890s, a decade widely remembered for its social liberalism, artistic decadence, and moral permissiveness relative to the stricter Victorian era that preceded it. Typically associated with fin-de-siècle culture — the Yellow Book, Oscar Wilde, music halls, and the New Woman movement. The 'naughty' tag captures a sense of playful transgression and scandal that colored the decade's cultural reputation. The era is fondly invoked in nostalgic discussions of Victorian and Edwardian history.
- Gay Nineties60%
(US) The decade of the 1890s, characterised by decadence, social scandal and the beginning of the suffragette movement.
- naught60%
(archaic) Nothingness.
- century58%
A period of one hundred consecutive years; often specifically a numbered period with conventional start and end dates, e.g., the twentieth century, which stretches from (strictly) 1901 through 2000, or (informally) 1900 through 1999. The first century AD was from 1 to 100.
- Naughty Nineties56%
(UK) (the 1890s).