How to Use nay in a Sentence

nay

noun
  • And thank you to all the senators for not asking for the yeas and nays.
    — NBC News, 29 Jan. 2020
  • All this despite the nay-saying of classic-car purists.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 13 Sep. 2025
  • The mere mention of restaurant dress codes can unleash a torrent of yeas and nays.
    — Tom Sietsema, Washington Post, 24 July 2019
  • The legislation was passed on a calling of the yeas and nays rather than a roll call vote.
    — Todd Spangler, Detroit Free Press, 25 July 2019
  • But my curiosity proved stronger than my nay-saying.
    — Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 8 May 2026
  • The score was 3-1 in favor of the nays on the health of four players of pressing concern.
    — Craig Davis, Sun-Sentinel.com, 8 May 2017
  • But, when the yeas and nays were called, all but three of them heeded their inner Pelosis and voted to impeach.
    — Deroy Murdock, National Review, 22 Dec. 2019
  • The duo is also dressed in matching iridescent corsets shaped like seashells that add to the under-the-sea scenery — nay, seanery.
    — Jennet Jusu, Allure, 24 Mar. 2022
  • But there is something deeper to my ongoing attraction—nay, obsession—with this show.
    — Vogue Runway, Vogue, 22 Nov. 2022
  • Every family — nay, every person — probably has some opinion on the best time to dig into the feast.
    — Becky Krystal, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2022
  • The bill passed the Senate on a bipartisan basis with 67 yeas to 28 nays.
    — Grace Segers, CBS News, 2 Aug. 2019
  • Sure, word warfare can nudge us on some issues – like yea or nay on a state infrastructure initiative or a county sales tax or a school district bond.
    — Sarah Stein Lubrano, Mercury News, 13 Sep. 2025
  • Much of what ensues takes place at the boss’s preposterously grandiose lodge — nay, castlelike fortress — tucked in wilderness and protected by armed guards.
    — Manohla Dargis, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
  • May an interested voter inquire as to what has become of any sort of contract, nay, contact, with America?
    — WSJ, 6 Sep. 2022
  • These votes were surprise, surprise, split along party lines with Republicans voting yea and Democrats voting nay.
    — Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 21 May 2021
  • Rand Paul Paul’s office also did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his nay vote.
    — Connor Greene, Time, 23 June 2026
  • The nay was made from thick reeds that grew wild in the region stretching from Ancient Egypt to Mesopotamia – at the heart of which lies modern-day Jordan.
    — Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 13 July 2018
  • That’s far above the 5 percent of nays cast on pay at the companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index during the same year.
    — Gretchen Morgenson, New York Times, 27 May 2016
  • Whether Hey or nay, responding to emails in batches is far better than in a continuous stream of low-level productivity between nine and five.
    — Jodie Cook, Forbes, 19 Apr. 2021
  • Unique among series-production vehicles, Rolls-Royces feature—nay, are built around—classic coach doors, even on two-door models like Wraith.
    — Dan Neil, WSJ, 30 Sep. 2020
  • Lamar Jackson is clearing — nay, deodorizing — the air over his temporary departure from the field during Monday night's game.
    — Jen Juneau, PEOPLE.com, 15 Dec. 2020
  • The group of eight nays cuts across the political spectrum -- from conservative Republicans to moderates.
    — Chad Pergram, Fox News, 28 June 2017
  • The amendment was voted down, but received 35 yea votes to 50 nays — a ratio that advocates considered to be a victory, however small.
    — Emily Hopkins, Indianapolis Star, 11 Feb. 2018
  • Last month, the San Francisco central committee resolution passed with 15 aye votes, eight nays and eight abstentions.
    — Heather Knight, New York Times, 3 May 2025
  • Initially, the Hall of Fame tasked its regular selection committee with voting yay or nay on the entire 15-person class.
    — Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, 19 Dec. 2019
  • Asynchronous collaboration is inherently disruptive and a game changer because there’s no place to hide for nay-sayers and defenders of the status quo.
    — Keith Ferrazzi, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2021
  • Student trustee Malinalli Villalobos joined him in voting nay, but the student role is advisory without a vote that counts toward the outcome.
    — Gwendolyn Wu, San Francisco Chronicle, 8 May 2022
  • Evidently that turned some of the ayes heard by the Senate president into nays, because the proposal was defeated, 21 to 17.
    — Patricia Mazzei, New York Times, 4 Mar. 2018
  • Keep your eyes peeled for cult-favorite Nordstrom pieces as well, like those Zella leggings with hundreds—nay, thousands—of five-star reviews—and the $44 bra with a loyal celeb following.
    — Talia Abbas, Glamour, 29 Nov. 2021
  • Some Palestinian rights advocates, including McCollum, didn’t join Tlaib’s nay.
    — New York Times, 3 Mar. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nay.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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