Meaning

noun a quantity of no importance

noun a mathematical element that when added to another number yields the same number

noun the point on a scale from which positive or negative numerical quantities can be measured

originCollectively borrowed from Early Modern Spanish zero, Middle French zero, and (their etymon) Old Italian zero, from Medieval Latin zēphirum, from Arabic صِفْر (ṣifr, “nothing; cipher”), itself calqued from Sanskrit शून्य (śūnyá, “void; nothingness”). Doublet of cipher and chiffre. Cognate with Spanish cero and French zéro.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0