nothing of the sort

nothing of the sort

Nothing that is similar to, close to, or like what was said or is in question. A: "Bill, are you planning on laying off a bunch of staff!" B: "No, nothing of the sort. We're just exploring options to reduce our expenditures each month, that's all." A: "Did you tell Mary that we were buying her a puppy for her birthday?" B: "I said nothing of the sort! I just asked her if it was something she might like." If taxpayers have been hoping for a bit of extra cash in their pockets after the tax reform bill the president signed today, they should expect nothing of the sort.
See also: nothing, of, sort
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

nothing of the ˈkind/ˈsort

(informal) not at all as somebody said or as you expected: The brochure said it would be a beginners’ course but it’s nothing of the sort. I said nothing of the kind. She completely misunderstood me.
See also: kind, nothing, of, sort
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
See also:
  • nothing of the kind
  • nothing of the kind/sort
  • nothing
  • nothing in it for (one)
  • No news is good news
  • be worked up about (something)
  • be worked up over (something)
  • nothing more than
  • nothing more than (something)
  • worked up over (something)
References in classic literature
"Oh, no, nothing of the sort, I assure you," Sheldon began with awkward haste, fearful of having offended, though he knew not how.
Adventure
He could do nothing of the sort. Without waiting until he had recovered himself, she answered him (to all appearances) as composedly as if he had spoken to her in the plainest terms.
I Say No
I had expected that the valet would be dismissed when I appeared, but nothing of the sort happened.
The Woman in White
Women do nothing of the sort. They act on impulse; and, in nine cases out of ten, they are heartily sorry for it afterward.
No Name
"I beg your pardon, but it is nothing of the sort. You are not qualified to attend my sister, Mr.
Howards End
`I shall do nothing of the sort,' said the Mouse, getting up and walking away.
Alices Adventures In Wonderland
At the "Criterion" he turned in and had a drink, and, bolder for the wine which he had swallowed at a gulp, he told himself that he would do nothing of the sort. He would not alter a jot.
A Millionaire of Yesterday
"You will do nothing of the sort," Thomson objected firmly.
The Kingdom of the Blind
"You will do nothing of the sort," Wingrave answered testily.
The Malefactor
"I know nothing of the sort. I know there's not a magazine in Christendom that wouldn't jump at it.
Martin Eden
Nothing of the sort had ever occurred before to any young ladies in the place, within her memory; no rencontre, no alarm of the kind;and now it had happened to the very person, and at the very hour, when the other very person was chancing to pass by to rescue her!It certainly was very extraordinary!And knowing, as she did, the favourable state of mind of each at this period, it struck her the more.
Emma
Possibly, some people might suspect him of a degree of under-bred pride; I have a sympathetic chord within that tells me it is nothing of the sort: I know, by instinct, his reserve springs from an aversion to showy displays of feeling - to manifestations of mutual kindliness.
Wuthering Heights
Why is it, sometimes, that sweet odours seem to be blowing through a courtyard where nothing of the sort can be?
Poor Folk
Sir Patrick affected nothing of the sort. One of the besetting sins of his time was the habitual concealment of our better selves--upon the whole, a far less dangerous national error than the habitual advertisement of our better selves, which has become the practice, public and privately, of society in this age.
Man And Wife
Nothing of the sort, for not a soul appeared but a sanginary-looking boy asleep under the current bushes.
Little Women