The spectral intensities at higher wavenumbers (higher energies) in the Raman O-H stretching signal are dominated by spectral contributions from water molecules having a smaller number of hydrogen-bonding possibilities fulfilled. Therefore, the gradual drop in spectral intensities at the lower wavenumber regions in all of the solute-correlated spectra, combined with a steady uptick in spectral intensities at higher wavenumber regions in them, with an increasing Au NP concentration, indicates that the presence of the NPs in dispersion, results in diminished extent of hydrogen-bonding in the surrounding water molecules.