zilch
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Meaning
nothing at all; zero.
Usage
after checking the old account, we found the balance was zilch.
all my efforts to convince him amounted to zilch.
the team scored zilch in the first half of the game.
Etymology
The origin of "zilch" is obscure but is popularly traced to the 1930s American college slang, where "joe zilch" was used as a generic name for an insignificant or nonexistent person. This fictional name evolved into a slang term meaning "zero" or "nothing." Its adoption into broader English was solidified in the mid-20th century, particularly in informal contexts, to emphatically denote a complete absence or lack of something.
Analysis
This is a simplex word. It is a slang term of unknown origin, though often associated with a fictional character name used in the 1930s.