nihil
English
Etymology
From Latin nihil, nil.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈni.hɪl/, /ˈniː.hɪl/, /ˈnaɪ.əl/
- Rhymes: -aɪəl
Noun
nihil (countable and uncountable, plural nihils)
- (countable, law) A nihil dicit.
- (uncountable, chiefly philosophy) nothingness, nonbeing
- 1996, David Tibet, “The Starres Are Marching Sadly Home (Theinmostlightthirdandfinal)” (lyrics):
- I shall no longer believe all the visions of my youth:
They have dissolved into nihil.
- I shall no longer believe all the visions of my youth:
- 2008, Arvydas Šliogeris, Names of Nihil, page 13:
- All tales about the beginning are apt to eliminate the nothing and make being overall. […] Without Nihil the whirlpool of the beginning settles down and becomes a stagnant puddle of pure being. Nihil disappears.
- 2009, Walter Brueggemann, An Unsettling God: The Heart of the Hebrew Bible, page 143:
- That is, in the sovereign act of creation, whereby YHWH orders chaos, YHWH provisionally defeated the power of the Nihil but did not destroy or eliminate the threat of chaos.
- 1996, David Tibet, “The Starres Are Marching Sadly Home (Theinmostlightthirdandfinal)” (lyrics):
Derived terms
- nihilhood
Interlingua
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈnihil/
Pronoun
nihil
- (indefinite) The absence of anything; nothing.
Latin
Alternative forms
- nil
- nichil (Late & Medieval)
Etymology
From nihilum, from ne- (“not”) + hīlum (“the least bit”).
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈni.hil/, [ˈni(ɦ)ɪɫ̪]
Audio (Classical) (file) - (Classical) IPA(key): /niːl/, [niːɫ̪]
- (Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈni.kil/, [ˈniːkil]
Pronoun
nihil n sg (indeclinable, no genitive)
- (indefinite) nothing
- 163 BCE, Publius Terentius Afer, Heauton Timorumenos 1.77:
- Homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto.
- I am a man, I consider nothing that is human alien to me.
- Homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto.
- 63 BCE, Cicero, Catiline Orations Oratio in Catilinam Prima in Senatu Habita.8:
- Nihil agis, nihil moliris, nihil cogitas quod non ego non modo audiam sed etiam videam planeque sentiam.
- You do nothing, you plan nothing, you think of nothing which I not only do not hear, but which I do not see and know every particular of.
- Nihil agis, nihil moliris, nihil cogitas quod non ego non modo audiam sed etiam videam planeque sentiam.
- Nīl·ne in mentem·st? ― Cannot you think of anything?
- Nihil est. ― It's nothing/It doesn't matter.
- Nihil sub sōle novum. ― Nothing new under the sun (proverb).
Declension
Not declined; used only in the nominative and accusative singular, singular only.
| Case | Singular |
|---|---|
| Nominative | nihil |
| Genitive | — |
| Dative | — |
| Accusative | nihil |
| Ablative | — |
| Vocative | — |
However, the genitive nihilī and the ablative nihilō (from nihilum) sometimes do occur.
The remaining cases are usually rendered with nūllus + rēs, e.g. genetive "nūllīus reī".
Derived terms
- adnihilō
- nihil album
- nihil debet
- nihil dicit
- nihildum
- nihilōminus
- nonnihil
Related terms
- adnihilātiō
- adnihilātor
Descendants
- Portuguese: nicles
References
- “nihil”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “nihil”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- nihil in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
- nihil in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
- Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book, London: Macmillan and Co.
- I cannot wait till..: nihil mihi longius est or videtur quam dum or quam ut
- nothing is more tiresome to me than..: nihil mihi longius est quam (c. Inf.)
- a wise man is in no way affected by this: hoc nihil ad sapientem pertinet
- to live a life free from all misfortune: nihil calamitatis (in vita) videre
- to afford no consolation: nihil habere consolationis
- to considerably (in no way) further the common good: multum (nihil) ad communem utilitatem afferre
- I will refuse you nothing: nihil tibi a me postulanti recusabo
- not to trouble oneself about a thing: nihil omnino curare
- there is nothing I am more interested in than..: nihil antiquius or prius habeo quam ut (nihil mihi antiquius or potius est, quam ut)
- to live as scrupulously moral a life as ever: nihil ex pristina virtute remittere
- to do no business with a man: nihil cum aliquo contrahere
- not to mention..: ut non (nihil) dicam de...
- but this is not to the point: sed hoc nihil (sane) ad rem
- there is something in what you say; you are more or less right: aliquid (τι) dicis (opp. nihil dicis)
- I cannot wait till..: nihil mihi longius est or videtur quam dum or quam ut
Malay
| 0 | 1 > | |
|---|---|---|
| Cardinal : nihil | ||
Alternative forms
- نيهيل
Etymology
From Latin nihil.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /nihel/
- Rhymes: -hel, -el
Numeral
nihil (Jawi spelling نيهيل)
- zero
Synonyms
- kosong / کوسوڠ
- sifar / صفر
- nol / نول