Noting

How to spell noting

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce noting

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does noting mean?

1. verbObserving, recording, or paying attention to a particular fact or detail.

Noting in a sentence

• Noting the time on the clock, she gathered her things and left the office.

• The auditor went through the ledger, noting each discrepancy in the margin.

Where does noting come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This is the present participle of the verb 'note', which English took from Old French 'noter', meaning to mark, observe, or write down. That French verb came in turn from the Latin 'notare', 'to mark or set down', built on the noun 'nota', meaning a written mark, sign, or short letter. The same Latin 'nota' lies behind a whole family of English words such as 'notation', 'notable', and 'notice', all carrying the idea of marking something for attention. English adopted 'note' in the 1300s, and the inflected 'noting' simply adds the regular '-ing' ending; because 'note' ends in a silent 'e', the spelling drops that 'e' before adding the suffix, which is the small trap that trips writers who keep an extra letter or confuse it with the unrelated word 'nothing'.

How the word is built

• note (mark, observe)
• -ing (present participle/gerund suffix)