MEANING
1. Indicating no detected effect in the particular test or comparison being made.
2. Having no elements, or consisting entirely of zeros, in a mathematical context.
3. A value or marker representing zero or missing information, depending on the system.
Use it for
describing a study that detects no effect; distinguishing a null finding from proof that no effect exists; qualifying the interpretation of an inconclusive comparisonSeparates a zero or absent effect from legal invalidity, a missing-data marker, and an action that cancels an effect. Writing functions: Evidence, Qualification / Uncertainty, Research / Methodology.
Words that belong together
- a null result
- a null finding
- a null effect
On the page
The null result did not rule out an effect smaller than the study could detect.
The review asks whether the repeated null findings reflect absent effects or insensitive measurements.
A null matrix contains zeros, whereas a null set contains no elements.
If every entry is zero, the matrix is null in this terminology.
The analyst preserved nulls rather than replacing every missing entry with zero.
Word forms
- Base
- null
- Past tense
- nulled
- Past participle
- nulled
- Present participle
- nulling
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Usage notes
Adjective, countable noun, and transitive verb. Noun: a null; plural nulls. Verb: null; nulls; nulled; nulled; nulling. Future: will null. The adjective is not routinely compared. Register: academic. Commonness: moderately common in research and technical writing (qualitative editorial estimate, informed by dictionaries/corpus).
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