zilchverb
Factsheet
What does the verb zilch mean?
There is one meaning in OED's entry for the verb zilch. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.
How common is the verb zilch?
| 1950 | 0.0029 |
| 1960 | 0.0041 |
| 1970 | 0.0055 |
| 1980 | 0.0064 |
| 1990 | 0.0074 |
| 2000 | 0.0088 |
| 2010 | 0.01 |
How is the verb zilch pronounced?
British English
U.S. English
Where does the verb zilch come from?
Earliest known use
1950s
The earliest known use of the verb zilch is in the 1950s.
OED's earliest evidence for zilch is from 1957, in Del Rio (Texas) News-Herald.
It is also recorded as a noun from the 1920s.
zilch is formed within English, by conversion.
Etymons: zilch n.
Nearby entries
- zigzag connection, n.1922–
- zigzagged, adj.1774–
- zigzaggery, n.1761–
- zigzaggy, adj.a1845–
- zigzag machine, n.1952–
- zigzag trefoil, n.1796–
- zig-zig, n.1918–
- Zika, n.1952–
- Zilavka, n.1926–
- zilch, n. & adj.1925–
- zilch, v.1957–
- zill, n.1754–
- zilla, n.1772–
- -zilla, comb. form
- zilladar, n.1763–
- Zil lane, n.1985–
- zilla parishad, n.1957–
- zillion, n. & adj.1920–
- zillionaire, n.1926–
- zillionth, n. & adj.1940–
- zimb, n.1790–
Etymology
Summary
Meaning & use
- 1957–transitive. To defeat (an opponent in a game or match) such that their final score is zero. More generally: to defeat; to quash, to reduce to nothing. Cf. zip v.2
- 1957
The Bastrop club we face is the same crew that got zilched by the North Side (San Antonio) Jaycees.
Del Rio (Texas) News-Herald 6 August 4/2 - 1969
Dartmouth also managed to take three contests from their opponents, zilching Penn 3–0.
Naugatuck (Connecticut) Daily News 9 January 9/3 - 1978
One divorced woman zilched any sexual committments [sic] for years for the sake of her two teen-age girls.
Eau Claire (Wisconsin) Leader-Telegram 30 June a6 - 2002
Imagine if the Houses of Parliament,..or the Sacré Coeur, or the Coliseum in Rome had been zilched.
Times 22 February (T2 section) 7/1 - 2012
It would have been easy for us to give in and let him score but we didn't do that and we wanted to make sure we zilched them.
Morley (West Yorks.) Observer & Advertiser (Nexis) 20 August
- overplayc1460–transitive. To surpass or overcome in playing; to defeat; to outplay. rare.
- smother1676–Used hyperbolically to denote an effusive welcome, etc., or the gaining of a complete or overwhelming victory.
- lurch1678transitive. To beat, in various games of skill, sometimes by a specified number or proportion of points. (See lurch, n.¹ 2.)
- outplay1702–transitive. To play better than; to beat or surpass in playing (in various senses of the verb). Occasionally reflexive.
- thrash1789–transitive. colloquial. To defeat (an opponent) easily or decisively in a game, competition, or other contest (originally esp. a physical fight).
- defeat1830–transitive. To beat (another person, team, or animal) in a contest or competition, esp. a sporting event.
- spreadeagle1832–transitive. Sport. To defeat completely, esp. by a considerable distance in a race.
- thresh1852–transitive. To inflict a heavy defeat on (an army, nation, enemy, etc.) in a conflict or battle; to defeat (an opponent) easily or decisively in…
- whitewash1867–transitive. colloquial (originally Baseball). In a game or contest: to beat (an opponent) in such a way that he or she fails to score. Also…
- blank1870–To dismiss (a sports team) without a score; to prevent from scoring. North American.
- annihilate1886–transitive. Sport. To defeat (an opponent) resoundingly or decisively.
- nip1893–U.S. transitive. In a sporting contest: to defeat, esp. by a narrow margin.
- slam1907–transitive. To beat by winning a slam; also dialect, to trump. Hence transferred, to beat completely.
- plaster1919–transitive. slang. To defeat utterly; (esp. Boxing) to strike with repeated heavy blows.
- skittle1919–To knock down (skittles, etc.); Cricket, to bowl out (batters) in rapid succession. Also figurative: to kill, defeat easily.
- rip1927–transitive. U.S. Sport colloquial. To defeat (a competitor or team) overwhelmingly.
- maul1928–transitive. In sport: to defeat (an opponent) utterly; to trounce.
- demolish1938–figurative. transitive. colloquial (chiefly Sport). To defeat (a player, team, etc.) easily or overwhelmingly.
- massacre1940–In weakened sense. transitive. Sport (originally U.S.). To defeat (a team or opponent) decisively.
- trounce1942–To defeat heavily at a sport. colloquial.
- hammer1948–figurative. To inflict heavy defeat(s) on, in war, games, etc.; to strike forcefully; to beat up. colloquial.
- murder1952–transitive. slang (originally U.S.). To defeat (an opponent, rival, etc.) totally or resoundingly, esp. in a sporting match. Also in extended use.
- to shut out1952–Baseball. (See quot. 1896. Cf. to shut out). Also transferred in other games and figurative. North American.
- zilch1957–transitive. To defeat (an opponent in a game or match) such that their final score is zero. More generally: to defeat; to quash, to reduce to…
- zip1964–transitive. U.S. colloquial. To defeat (an opponent in a game or match) without allowing them to score. Cf. zilch, v.
- trip1974–spec. in U.S. Sport, to defeat.
society leisure sport winning, losing, or scoring [transitive verbs] win, lose, or score score prevent opposition from scoring- save?1801–Sport. transitive. To prevent the opposing side from scoring (a run, goal, etc.); (of a goalkeeper) to stop (a shot, etc.) from going into the goal…
- zilch1957–transitive. To defeat (an opponent in a game or match) such that their final score is zero. More generally: to defeat; to quash, to reduce to…
the world action or operation prosperity success mastery or superiority [transitive verbs] have or gain mastery or superiority over overcome or defeat soundly- threshc1384–transitive. To inflict a heavy defeat on (an army, nation, enemy, etc.) in a conflict or battle; to defeat (an opponent) easily or decisively in…
- to knock the socks offa1529–Slang and colloquial phrases: to turn a sock; in one's socks, as a condition of measurement of stature; = to stand in one's stockings at stocking, n.²…
- thump1597–figurative. To ‘beat’ (in a fight), to drub, lick, thrash severely. colloquial.
- thrash1609–transitive. To inflict a heavy defeat on (an army, nation, enemy, etc.) in a conflict or battle. colloquial in later use.
- thwacka1616–figurative. To ‘beat’ in a contest, to defeat severely.
- capot1649–transferred. To ‘score off’ (a person) heavily. Also as an imprecation capot me!
- to beat to snuff1819–In colloquial phrases. to beat to snuff, to beat utterly.
- To injure or damage (someone or something) severely, irreparably, or beyond recognition; to maim or destroy in combat. Now somewhat rare.
- to —— (the) hell out of (a person or thing): to —— (a person or thing) to an excessive, violent, or unpleasant degree. Cf. to —— the fuck out of (a p…
- sledgehammer1834–transitive to strike, work at, as with a sledgehammer.
- rout1835–transitive. To defeat (an opposing party, team, etc.) resoundingly.
- whop1836–figurative. To overcome, vanquish, defeat utterly (with literal blows, or in a contest of any kind); hence, to surpass or excel greatly: = beat, v.¹…
- skin1838–transitive. slang (originally U.S.). To defeat or overcome completely; (Football (Soccer)) to take the ball past (a defender) with ease.
- to lick (a person or thing) into fits: to defeat (a person) thoroughly; to be greatly superior to (something). Cf. fit, n.² 3d. Now somewhat rare.
- whip-saw1842–(intransitive) to work a whip-saw; transitive to cut with a whip-saw; figurative (U.S. slang) to have or get the advantage of thoroughly, to…
- U.S. to lick (a person) out of his, her boots: to defeat (an opponent) comprehensively and completely.
- colloquial (originally U.S., now chiefly British). to knock (the) spots off and variants: to beat thoroughly; to outdo easily.
- to make mincemeat of1853–figurative. Something reduced to small fragments; a jumble, or clumsy mixture of such fragments. Frequently in to make mincemeat of and similar…
- transitive. colloquial. to mop (up) the floor with: to beat severely, to thrash; to inflict a crushing defeat on. Cf. to wipe the floor with at wipe…
- to beat pointless1877–to beat pointless: to beat (an opponent) so thoroughly as to concede no points; (more generally) to beat convincingly or by a clear margin.
- to take apart1880–transitive. To beat or thrash severely; to subject to severe or brutal criticism; to demolish (literal and figurative).
- to knock out1883–figurative. To drive out of the contest; to vanquish, exhaust. Cf. to knock out of time at time, n. & int. & conj. phrases P.3m.ii.
- wax1884–transitive. ‘To beat thoroughly, gain a decisive victory over’ (Funk).
- contund1885–To bruise (the body), affect with contusions; to pound or thrash (adversaries). humorous or affected.
- Hence colloquial in various hyperbolical phrases, as to scream oneself into fits, to throw (a person) into fits. Also, to beat (a person, a thing)…
- Phrases (with various nouns as object). to wipe one's boots on: to inflict the utmost indignity upon. to wipe the floor with: to ‘bring to the…
- flatten1892–colloquial. To knock (a person) down with a heavy blow, to ‘floor’; in extended use, to defeat utterly, best, rout. Also with out.
- transitive with it as object, in to break it off in (a person). U.S. colloquial. To inflict deliberate harm, humiliation, or defeat upon (a person)…
- Cricket. With omission of runs. Also transferred and figurative in various colloquial phrases: to knock (someone) for six, to wrench from a state of…
- slaughter1903–To defeat or demolish completely. colloquial.
- slather1910–slang. To thrash, defeat thoroughly, castigate.
- hammer1948–figurative. To inflict heavy defeat(s) on, in war, games, etc.; to strike forcefully; to beat up. colloquial.
- whomp1952–transitive. To defeat decisively.
- bulldozer1954–transitive. To defeat (an opposing team, party, etc.) overwhelmingly or decisively. Also with down.
- zilch1957–transitive. To defeat (an opponent in a game or match) such that their final score is zero. More generally: to defeat; to quash, to reduce to…
- shred1966–figurative. To defeat overwhelmingly, to trounce. slang (originally U.S.).
- tank1973–transitive. Chiefly Scottish and Irish English (northern). To defeat soundly. Cf. tonk, v. 2.
- slam-dunk1975–transitive. colloquial. To dismiss or defeat (a person or thing) decisively.
- beast1977–slang (originally and chiefly U.S.). transitive. To defeat (an opponent or rival) completely or resoundingly; to annihilate.
Pronunciation
British English
U.S. English
Consonants
- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- ɬrhingyll
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing
Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence
Vowels
- iːfleece
- ihappy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- atrap, bath
- ɑːstart, palm, bath
- ɒlot
- ɔːthought, force
- ʌstrut
- ʊfoot
- uːgoose
- əletter
- əːnurse
- ɪənear
- ɛːsquare
- ʊəcure
- eɪface
- ʌɪpride
- aʊmouth
- əʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ãgratin
- ɒ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)
Other symbols
- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.
View the pronunciation model here.
Consonants
- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye*
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing
* /d/ also represents a 'tapped' /t/ as in
Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence
Vowels
- ifleece, happy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- ætrap, bath
- ɑlot, palm, cloth, thought
- ɑrstart
- ɔcloth, thought
- ɔrnorth, force
- ʊfoot
- ugoose
- əstrut, comma
- ərnurse, letter
- ɪ(ə)rnear
- ɛ(ə)rsquare
- ʊ(ə)rcure
- eɪface
- aɪpride
- aʊmouth
- oʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ɑ̃gratin
- æ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)
Other symbols
- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.
View the pronunciation model here.
Simple text respell breaks words into syllables, separated by a hyphen. The syllable which carries the primary stress is written in capital letters. This key covers both British and U.S. English Simple Text Respell.
Consonants
b, d, f, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, v, w and z have their standard English values
- gguy
- jjay
- yyore
- chchore
- khloch
- shshore
- ththaw
- dhthee
- zhbeige
Vowels
- atrap
- ahpalm
- airsquare
- arstart
- arrcarry (British only)
- awthought
- ayface
- a(ng)gratin
- edress
- eefleece
- eerdeer
- errmerry
- ikit
- ighpride
- irrmirror
- olot (British only)
- ohgoat
- oogoose
- oorcure
- orforce
- orrsorry (British only)
- owmouth
- oyvoice
- o(ng)salon
- ustrut
- uhletter
- urnurse
- urrhurry
- uufoot
Frequency
zilch typically occurs fewer than 0.01 times per million words in modern written English.
zilch is in frequency band 2, which contains words occurring between 0.001 and 0.01 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands
Frequency of zilch, v., 1950–2010
* Occurrences per million words in written English
Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.
The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.
For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.
Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.
| Decade | Frequency per million words |
|---|---|
| 1950 | 0.0029 |
| 1960 | 0.0041 |
| 1970 | 0.0055 |
| 1980 | 0.0064 |
| 1990 | 0.0074 |
| 2000 | 0.0088 |
| 2010 | 0.01 |