zilch
Americannoun
noun
-
nothing
-
sport nil
Etymology
Origin of zilch
1965–70, perhaps continuous with earlier zilch snafu, Mr. Zilch a character in Ballyhoo, a humor magazine first published in 1931; for sense cf. zip 3
Explanation
Zilch is zero or nearly zero. This is a slangy term for nothing at all. If you have nothing in your bank account, you have zilch. If you no money in your pockets, you have zilch. People usually use this word when they're being humorous or informal. A CEO would be unlikely to say zilch when speaking to shareholders. A friend who beats another friend 3-0 in air hockey is likely to say "I win, three to zilch!" Zilch can also be called aught, a goose egg, nada, naught, nil, nix, null, zip, or zippo.
Vocabulary lists containing zilch
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
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Linked
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Jazmin's Notebook
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But if you die first, your $100,000 equity and $30,000 in stocks go to your husband, and your kids get zero — nothing, zilch, nada.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026
Stellantis paid an annual $1.65 dividend in 2024, then dropped it to 77 cents in 2025, before going to zilch for 2026.
From Barron's • Feb. 12, 2026
The Trojans were eventually forced to attempt a field goal, but Ryon Sayeri bounced it off the right upright and the Trojans ended up with zilch.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 22, 2025
“Z” the zebra is still zooming through the wild, and a zillion zealous searches have returned zilch.
From Seattle Times • May 1, 2024
That was all he desired, because any actual investigation would have come up with zilch.
From Salon • Feb. 5, 2024
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
