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Origin and history of nihil

nihil(n.)

Latin, literally "nothing" (see nil). Phrase nihil obstat "nothing stands in the way" printed on first pages of a Catholic work indicates its official approval.

Entries linking to nihil

nil(n.)

"nothing," 1833, from Latin nil, contraction of nihil, nihilum "nothing, not at all; in vain," from ne- "not" (from PIE root *ne- "not") + hilum "small thing, trifle," which is of unknown origin. The Latin phrase nil desperandum, used loosely for "never give up," is literally "nothing is to be despaired of," from the gerundive of desperare.

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    Trends of nihil

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

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    nihilism
    1817, "the doctrine of negation" (in reference to religion or morals), from German Nihilismus, from Latin nihil "nothing...
    naught
    mid-14c., "evil, an evil act," also " a trifle," c. 1400, "nothingness;" early 15c., in arithmetic, "the number zero;" from noht, naht (pron.) "nothing" (late 12c.), from Old English nawiht "nothing," literally "no whit," from na "no" (from PIE root *ne- "not") + wiht "thing, cre
    zero
    "figure which stands for naught in the Arabic notation," also "the absence of all quantity considered as quantity," c. 1600, from French zéro or directly from Italian zero, from Medieval Latin zephirum, from Arabic sifr "cipher," translation of Sanskrit sunya-m "empty place, dese
    nothing
    "no thing, not any thing, not something," Middle English, from Old English naþing, naðinc, from nan "not one" (see none) + þing "thing" (see thing). Meaning "insignificant thing, thing of no consequence" is from c. 1600. As an adverb, "not at all, in no degree," late Old English.
    aught
    "something, anything," late 12c., from Old English awiht "aught, anything, something," literally "e'er a whit," from a- "ever" (from Proto-Germanic *aiwi- "ever," extended form of PIE root *aiw- "vital force, life; long life, eternity") + *wihti "thing, anything whatever" (see wi
    cipher
    late 14c., "arithmetical symbol for zero," from Old French cifre "nought, zero," Medieval Latin cifra, which, with Spanish and Italian cifra, ultimately is from Arabic sifr "zero," literally "empty, nothing," from safara "to be empty;" a loan-translation of Sanskrit sunya-s "empt
    zilch
    "nothing," 1957; "insignificant person," 1933, from use of Zilch as a generic comical-sounding surname for an insignificant person (especially Joe Zilch). There was a Mr. Zilch (1931), comic character in the magazine "Ballyhoo," and the use perhaps originated c. 1922 in U.S. coll
    nada
    slang for "nothing," 1933 (Hemingway), from Spanish nada "nothing," from Latin (res) nata "small, insignificant thing," literally "(thing) born," from natus, past participle of nasci "to be born" (Old Latin gnasci), from PIE root *gene- "give birth, beget." First in Hemingway's "
    concept
    "a general notion, the immediate object of a thought," 1550s, from Medieval Latin conceptum "draft, abstract," in classical Latin "(a thing) conceived," from concep-, past-participle stem of concipere "to take in and hold; become pregnant," from con-, here perhaps an intensive pr
    remember
    mid-14c., remembren, "keep or bear (something or someone) in mind, retain in the memory, preserve unforgotten," from Old French remembrer "remember, recall, bring to mind" (11c.), from Latin rememorari "recall to mind, remember," from re- "again" (see re-) + memorari "be mindful

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