Pop Culture dictionary
zill
[zil]
What does zill mean?
Zill can variously refer to a type of finger-cymbal used in belly dancing, different fictional characters in popular culture, or the indefinitely large number, zillion.
Where does zill come from?
Examples of zill
Who uses zill?
Forms of the original Turkish word zil are used in Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean dance cultures for the instrument and their music. Among Westerners, zill (one cymbal) or zills (the usual pair) can be used among those who study, practice, or are otherwise interested in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean dance tradition, particularly belly dancing.
When referring to a name from various pop-culture works, Zill is used by fans of the work. The name is especially popular in fantasy-based media, and outside of established characters and the fan-fiction and fan-art they’ve inspired, some fantasy fans will author their own characters Zill or style their usernames after it. Zill is also sometimes used in humorous reference to Godzilla (e.g., a ferocious zillmonster).
Online, zill is occasionally employed as a casual way to referring to an enormous, but unspecified, number, typically noted of money.
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of zill like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of zill that will help our users expand their word mastery.