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• nil
  nil

  noun

  nothing; naught; zero.
• NIL
  NIL

  abbreviation

  name, image, likeness: aspects of a collegiate athlete’s identity for which they may earn money from a third party, as for advertising sponsorship or merchandise sales, although they are prohibited from being paid directly by colleges and universities for their participation in intercollegiate sports.

nil

¹ American  

[nil] / nɪl /

noun

1. nothing; naught; zero.

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adjective

1. having no value or existence.

   His credit rating is nil.

NIL ² American  

abbreviation

1. name, image, likeness: aspects of a collegiate athlete’s identity for which they may earn money from a third party, as for advertising sponsorship or merchandise sales, although they are prohibited from being paid directly by colleges and universities for their participation in intercollegiate sports.

   Student-athletes should report NIL activities consistent with state law or school and conference requirements to their school.

   The NCAA decision about NIL has forever changed college football, allowing players to make money for the first time.

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nil British  

/ nɪl /

noun

1. another word for nothing: used esp in the scoring of certain games

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Etymology

Origin of nil¹

First recorded in 1805–15; from Latin nīl, variant of nīlum, contraction of nihilum “nothing,” equivalent to ne- “not” + hīlum “trifle”

Origin of NIL²

First recorded in 2021; by abbreviation

Explanation

Use the word nil to mean "zero," especially when you're talking about scores in a sporting event: "the final score was twelve-nil." Saying nil instead of zero or nothing is much more common in Britain than in the United States. In the U.S. you might hear a tennis score include the word nil, while in the U.K. it's a common term for cricket and football scores as well. There's also a common British medical usage, "nil by mouth," a doctor's instruction not to eat or drink before surgery. Nil is a contraction of the Latin word for "nothing," nihil.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

nil NIL

The odds of this forecast coming true are close to nil; employment almost never collapses by that much, and never when output is skyrocketing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

I think the chances of that are basically nil, as the news cycle is already moving on.

From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026

“This means that the probability of switching into a lower-carry, higher-rate regime is probably not nil, and is less easily priced by the market,” Fink added.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026

The water visibility was nil — just a blur of yellow, brown and eventually black.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2025

Will we or nil we, we could do no other than hear.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

The ruling paved the way for college athletes to receive NIL compensation, and five years later, in 2026, the NIL economy is estimated to be worth $2.7 billion, per Opendorse.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026

“We have 12 football players that have NIL deals with Nike. No school in America has more than eight,” Kiffin boasted last month, turning the SEC’s annual media days into yet another recruiting pitch.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

For one, it includes an NIL component, with select top-tier Trojan athletes slated to score their own NIL deals with Nike.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

Star athletes can now legally earn millions of dollars, between direct compensation from their schools and fees the players can command for the marketing rights to their name, image and likeness, known as NIL payments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

Of excitement and praise they are chary, There is nothing much good upon earth; Their watchword is NIL ADMIRARI, They are bored from the days of their birth.

From The Man from Snowy River by A. B. (Andrew Barton) Paterson