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knot ~ not ~ nought:

{The letter ‘k’ in “knot” is silent.}

[‘Knot’ rhymes with ‘not’; and ‘nought’ has a slightly different vowel sound, with the letters ‘gh’ silent.]

“Knot” (noun & verb) is ‘a lump-like fastening made by tying the end parts of a string(s), rope(s) or wire(s); a lump-like hard part in a branch of a tree or on the trunk of a tree where a branch should have grown’,

[There are several other definitions to ‘knot’, and so, we are advised to consult a good monolingual dictionary.]

different types of knots

e.g. Sailors are experts in tying knots. ____________________

“Not” (adverb) is ‘one of the adverbs of negation used for changing a word or expression into negative’,

e.g. He is a boy. (positive statement) → He is not a boy.   (negative statement) ______________________

“Nought” (also ‘naught’) is ‘used to represent the figure ‘O’ (number zero) in words; (old usage) nothing’,

e.g.

The figure 109 is usually read: one nought/naught nine or one hundred and nine. The peace negotiations with the terrorists came to nought. [i.e.  the peace talks were unsuccessful]

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