nil


Also found in: Thesaurus, Legal, Acronyms, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

nil

 (nĭl)
n.
Nothing; zero.

[Latin nīl, contraction of nihil; see ne in Indo-European roots.]

nil adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

nil

(nɪl)
n
another word for nothing: used esp in the scoring of certain games
[C19: from Latin]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

nil

(nɪl)

n.
1. nothing; naught; zero.
adj.
2. having no value or existence.
[1805–15; < Latin nīl, variant (by apocope) of nīlum, contraction of nihilum nothing =ni (variant of ne not) + hīlum trifle]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.nil - a quantity of no importancenil - a quantity of no importance; "it looked like nothing I had ever seen before"; "reduced to nil all the work we had done"; "we racked up a pathetic goose egg"; "it was all for naught"; "I didn't hear zilch about it"
relative quantity - a quantity relative to some purpose
nihil - (Latin) nil; nothing (as used by a sheriff after an unsuccessful effort to serve a writ); "nihil habet"
Fanny Adams, sweet Fanny Adams - little or nothing at all; "I asked for a raise and they gave me bugger-all"; "I know sweet Fanny Adams about surgery"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

nil

noun
1. nothing, love, zero, zip (U.S. slang) The score was 2-nil.
2. zero, nothing, none, naught, zilch (slang), zip (U.S. slang) The chances of success are virtually nil.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

nil

noun
No thing; not anything:
Informal: zero.
Slang: nix, zilch.
Archaic: aught.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
صِفْر، لا شيءلَا شَيْءَ
nulanic
nul
nolla
nula
núll, ekkert
nulle
nič
noll
ศูนย์
không

nil

[nɪl]
A. N (= nothing) → nada f (Sport) → cero m
Granada beat Murcia two-nilel Granada venció al Murcia dos-cero or por dos a cero
they drew nil-nilempataron a cero ZERO
B. ADJnulo
its merits are nilsus méritos son nulos, no tiene mérito alguno
C. CPD nil balance N (Fin) → balance m nulo
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

nil

[ˈnɪl] n
(British) (SPORT)zéro m
We won one nil → Nous avons gagné un à zéro.
They lost two nil to Italy → Ils ont perdu deux à zéro contre l'Italie.
to be nil (= non-existent) → être nul (nulle)m/f
Their chances of survival are nil → Leurs chances de survie sont nulles.
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

nil

n (= zero)null (also Sport); (= nothing)nichts; the score was one-niles stand eins zu null; the response etc was nildie Reaktion etc war gleich null ? also zero
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

nil

[nɪl] nnulla m (Sport) → zero
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

nil

(nil) noun
(in scoring) nothing; zero. Leeds United won two-nil / by two goals to nil.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

nil

لَا شَيْءَ nula nul Null μηδέν cero nolla néant nula zero nul null nic nada ноль noll ศูนย์ sıfır không
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
References in classic literature ?
This speed would even become nil , if this point joined that of equal attraction.
To which Samson replied, "The difference between the two sorts of madmen is, that he who is so will he nil he, will be one always, while he who is so of his own accord can leave off being one whenever he likes."
Those persons, indeed, who have passed any time behind the scenes of this great theatre, and are thoroughly acquainted not only with the several disguises which are there put on, but also with the fantastic and capricious behaviour of the Passions, who are the managers and directors of this theatre (for as to Reason, the patentee, he is known to be a very idle fellow and seldom to exert himself), may most probably have learned to understand the famous nil admirari of Horace, or in the English phrase, to stare at nothing.
He would indeed have been obliged to admit that in the eastern--much the larger--part of Russia rent was as yet nil, that for nine-tenths of the eighty millions of the Russian peasants wages took the form simply of food provided for themselves, and that capital does not so far exist except in the form of the most primitive tools.
You know of course that a mathematical line, a line of thickness NIL, has no real existence.
The latter, faithful to the principle of Horace, nil admirari, had contented himself with showing his knowledge by declaring in what lake the best lampreys were caught.
Defuncti injuria ne afficiantur was a law of the twelve tables, and De mortuis nil nisi bonum is an excellent injunction -- even if the dead in question be nothing but dead small beer.
(A learned friend, to whom I once narrated this history, observed that it was David's guilt which made these prongs formidable, and that the "mens nil conscia sibi" strips a pitchfork of all terrors.
The risk is practically nil. The tragedy will not take place until nearly a fortnight later.
'Let it be clearly understood between us that the reward is mine, and that Nil is the claim of this slave,' and pushed the flying waiter before him out of the room.
Their result is absolutely nil. They give us, now and then, some of those luxurious sterile emotions that have a certain charm for the weak.