diddly-squat
/ˈdi-dᵊl-ē-ˌskwät ˈdid-lē-/ (ame, mw)
diddly-squat — noun
1. an informal American way of saying that there is absolutely no amount or quantit
an informal American way of saying that there is absolutely no amount or quantity of something — always used in a negative sense to emphasize that someone knows, has, does, or receives nothing
Mei-Lin has lived here for three years but knows diddly-squat about the local customs.
knows + diddly-squat + about [topic]
The new employee earned diddly-squat during his first month at the company.
earn + diddly-squat (amount of money)
Kwame's landlord refused to do diddly-squat about the broken heater in the kitchen.
After six months of saving, Ananya had diddly-squat left after paying her medical bills.
The committee did diddly-squat to fix the park's broken benches last summer.
- nothing
the standard neutral word; diddly-squat is much more informal and emphatic
- zilch
similarly informal American slang; interchangeable in most contexts
- squat
the base slang term that diddly-squat elaborates on; slightly less common alone
- zero
informal use meaning 'nothing at all' but also has precise numerical uses
- everything
the opposite meaning; neutral in register
- a lot
implies a large quantity rather than absence
文法句型
diddly-squat + [verb phrase in negative context]
know/do/get/have + diddly-squat
用法筆記
Strictly a negative polarity item — the surrounding sentence must express a negative or absent quantity. Not used in affirmative statements to mean 'something.' Avoid in formal or professional writing.