Emily Dickinson Lexicon

N,

is the fourteenth letter of the English Alphabet, and an articulation formed by placing the end of the tongue against the root of the upper teeth. It is an imperfect mute or semi-vowel, and a nasal letter; the articulation being accompanied with a sound through the nose. It has one sound only, and after m is silent or nearly so, as in hymn and condemn. N, among the ancients, was a numeral letter signifying 900, and with a stroke over it, {N with super-macron}, 9000. Among the lawyers, N. L. stood for non liquet, the case is not clear. In commerce, No. is an abbreviation of the French nombre, and stands for number. N.S. stands for New Style.