zilch
/zɪlt͡ʃ/noun, adjective, verb
zilch is spelled Z-I-L-C-H: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 54,808th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, zilch means “Nothing, zero” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of zilch is zilches.
How many letters and syllables are in zilch?
| Letters | 5: Z-I-L-C-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 54,808th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is zilch?
Zilch appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 54,808th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce zilch?
- US /zɪlt͡ʃ/
Zilch has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-zilch.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-I_learned_some_phrases-zilch.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with zilch?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as zilch from its last stressed vowel (/ɪltʃ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of zilch
- zilches plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- zilching participle, present
- zilched participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does zilch mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
archaicinformalA nobody: a person who is worthless in importance or character.
President Henry P. Zilch. Chairman of the Board Charles D. Zilch. Treasurer Otto Zilch.
- 2
informalNothing, zero.
Her search for decent home-made winter clothes came up with zilch, so she had to get imported stuff.
adjective
- 1
USinformalNo, zero, non-existent.
verb
- 1
USinformalTo cause to score nothing, to thoroughly defeat.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Zilch in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense (informal) nothing:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does zilch come from?
Probably from Joe Zilch, a placeholder name (compare John Doe) used by Nunnally Johnson in his column in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle from 1923; in turn from Joe Zilch, an unseen character referenced in comedian Frank Tinney's stage routine. Compare the rare German surname Zilch.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).