Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (also nicks, nixie, nixy) nobody, no one, nothing.

1789		G. Parker Life’s Painter 151: How they have brought a German word into cant I know not, but nicks means nothing in the cant language.
1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue (3rd edn) n.p.: Nix. Nothing.
1809		G. Andrewes Dict. Sl. and Cant.
1812		Vaux Vocab. of the Flash Lang.
1824		Egan Boxiana IV 144: Men who can be backed for large stakes do seldom fight for nix.
1827		Pierce Egan’s Life in London 6 May 949/1: Bob [...] was not the man to peel for ‘nicks’.
1833		‘The Slap-Up Cracksman’ in Swell!!! or, Slap-Up Chaunter 43: Rum swag, if luck, if not, why nix.
1835		‘Frisky Poll Of Broker’s Alley’ in Knowing Chaunter 20: She’d done the cove upon the tally; / She’d nail’d the simple kiddy’s blunt, / And he had nicks in Broker’s-alley.
1842		Whip & Satirist of NY & Brooklyn (NY) 5 Mar. n.p.: I get my grub all too for nix.
1845		Bell’s Life in Sydney 6 Sept. 4/2: I’ve had my ogle smash’d for nix.
1846		Thackeray Diary of C. Jeames de la Pluche in Works III (1898) 421: My Bathershins and Derrynane Beg, of which I’d bought 2000 for the account at 17 primmium, down to nix.
1848		Flash Dict. in Sinks of London Laid Open 17: Nicks, nothing.
1852		‘The Cadger’s Ball’ in Farmer Musa Pedestris (1896) 147: Old Mother Swankey, she consented / To lend her lodging-house for nix.
1865		Leaves from Diary of Celebrated Burglar 37/2: Ikey growled a little about letting them b—y ‘shisers pal in’ with us on the ‘lush tack;’ he thought they had had enough for ‘nix’.
1869		Cork Examiner 1 Sept. 2/4: ‘What luck?’ he asked in an undoubted Cockney accent. ‘Nix,’ replied the gentleman [...] ‘did you do anything?’ ‘Deuce a bit — downey as hawks,’ was the answer.
1871		C.G. Leland ‘Ballade’ in Hans Breitmann in Europe 214: O Prince! dese quesdions all are nix, / I sit here all alone.
1881		Dundee Courier (Scot.) 12 Apr. 7/3: I know where I can get a bundle [i.e. of tracts] at Exeter for nix.
1885		Bulletin (Sydney) 14 Mar. 18/1: The attendance of the public [...] had fallen off to one or two larrikins with pockets like Joe Thompson’s after the railway disaster – that is to say, chock full of ‘nix.’.
1889		Maggie Cline [perf.] ‘Down Went McGinty’ 🎵 Down went McGinty to the bottom of the jail / Where his board would cost him nix, and he stayed exactly six.
1893		‘Kicking Their Livers Out’ in Seal (1999) 40: If a Sydney trap arrest you, though you’re simply doing nix.
1895		C. Crowe Aus. Sl. Dict. 53: Nix, or Nixy, nothing.
1899		R. Whiteing No. 5 John Street 285: There’s a whole tanner’s worth for nix.
1906		E. Dyson Fact’ry ’Ands 249: [He] set up er storm centre [...] redooced [...] land values t’ nex’ t’ nixie.
1908		Sporting Times 14 Mar. 1/5: When a man has nix he vill get blenty less by vorrying howinell der udder feller got so much—ain’d it?
1910		Sun. Times (Perth) 6 Feb. 2nd sect. 1/1: They Say [...] That before they have arrived at the fifth whisky be has given, counsel's opinion for nix.
1912		S. Ford Trying Out Torchy 20: ‘How about young Cutting?’ says Old Hickory. ‘Full of nicks,’ says I.
1915		L.D. Richards diary 27 Feb. 🌐 Started at 8:15 and whiled away the time at vingt et un for nix.
1919		F. Hurst ‘Heads’ in Humoresque 203: He is a nix, an empty-headed—.
1920		Ade Hand-made Fables 183: Otherwise he is Nix.
1922		Joyce Ulysses 406: Nix for the hornies.
1934		B. Appel Brain Guy (1937) 41: You’d be nix carrying a rod.
1942		R. Chandler High Window 43: Under that suit? Nix.
1951		D. Stivens Jimmy Brockett 162: I knew he was a bit hard up at the moment and two thousand shares for nix might get him in.
1990		(con. early 1950s) J. Ellroy L.A. Confidential 138: Jack tried to read plate numbers – nix, too dark out.
1999		Guardian G2 29 July 9: I know nothing! Rien! NIX!

2. (US) nowhere.

1899–1900

C.L. Cullen Tales of the Ex-Tanks 294: Where were you keeping yourself yesterday? I tried all the covers, but you were nix.

3. (US) a good-for-nothing.

1916

L. Pound ‘Word-List From Nebraska’ in DN IV:iv 278: nix, n. A good-for-nothing. ‘A nix of a young man, nobody knows who he is.’.

4. (drugs) a stranger among the group.

2001

ONDCP Street Terms 16: Nix — Stranger among the group.