nil
See also: Appendix:Variations of "nil"
English
Etymology
From Latin nīl, a contraction of nihil, nihilum (“nothing”). See nihilism.
Pronunciation
Noun
nil (usually uncountable, plural nils)
- Nothing; zero.
- 1946, Bertrand Russell, History of Western Philosophy, I.19:
- As to Aristotle's influence on him, we are left free to conjecture whatever seems to us most plausible. For my part, I should suppose it nil.
- (sports) A score of zero
- The football match ended in a nil-nil draw.
Derived terms
Translations
nothing
|
zero (in sports)
Determiner
nil
- No, not any.
- 1982, Gavin Lyall, Conduct of Major Maxim, Hodder & Stoughton Ltd:
- But after two or three hours and nil results, you have to accept that the trail is cold and you can't justify that level of manpower.
Related terms
See also
Anagrams
Golin
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Noun
nil
Derived terms
References
- Gordon Bunn, Golin Grammar (1974)
Interlingua
Pronunciation
Pronoun
nil (indefinite)
Latin
Etymology
Syncopic form of nihil, in turn from nihilum, from ne- (“not”) + hilum (“a hilum; a trifle, a bagatelle”), or unknown origin
Pronunciation
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /niːl/, [niːɫ̪]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /nil/, [nil]
Noun
nīl n (indeclinable)
- (chiefly poetic) nothing
- Bene scripsisti de me, Thoma. Quam ergo mercedem accipies? Nil nisi te.
- You have written well of me, Thomas. What reward therefore will you receive? Nothing other than you.
References
- “nil”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “nil”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
Tok Pisin
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Etymology
Noun
nil
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