oughts

Things you should

Oughts is an informal name for the decade 2000–2009, formed by analogy with earlier decades: the twenties, the thirties.

The term never gained wide traction—alternatives like the two-thousands or the aughts competed, and none became standard.

Separately, oughts is the plural of ought in its noun sense of zero or nothing: three oughts in a row.

obligations

duties

Required tasks or charges

expectations · imperatives · mandates · commitments · burdens · charges · compulsions · accountabilities · liabilities · pledges

ethics

morals

Principles of right conduct

values · codes · precepts · tenets · ideals · conventions · rules · guidelines · criteria · maxims

Opposites
obligation vs. permission/freedom

oughtscans

Sealed metal containers

permissions · options · liberties · freedoms · choices

normative vs. descriptive

oughtsis

Present-tense existence verb

are · facts · actualities · realities · what is

rational obligation vs. non-rational motivation

oughtswants

Longs to possess

desires · inclinations · preferences · wishes · feelings

Phrases
Family

ought, nought, noughts

Familiarity
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Profile
Used worldwide · Timeless · Abstract · Everyday, not technical · Rated G