英文「Nihilism」這個詞最早來源於拉丁語中的「nihil」,意為「什麼都沒有」。牛津英語字典認為它於1817年進入英語詞彙,而Alain Ray的Dictionnaire historique de la langue française(1995年修訂版)認為它在1787年進入法語詞彙,nihiliste最早於1761年使用;不過那時,指宗教意義上的異教徒。Ray同時認為1829年出現在俄語中的nigilizm,是由於這個詞對於現代語言的浸透。
Deleuze, Gilles. Nietzsche and Philosophy. 由Tomlinson, Hugh翻譯. London: The Athlone Press. 19621983. ISBN 978-0-231-13877-2. Nietzsche calls the enterprise of denying life and depreciating existence nihilism.
Pratt, Alan. Nihilism. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. (原始內容存檔於2010-04-12). Nihilism is the belief that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated. It is often associated with extreme pessimism and a radical skepticism that condemns existence.
Nihilism. Encyclopædia Britannica. [2021-12-17]. (原始內容存檔於2021-11-25). In the 20th century, nihilism encompassed a variety of philosophical and aesthetic stances that, in one sense or another, denied the existence of genuine moral truths or values, rejected the possibility of knowledge or communication, and asserted the ultimate meaninglessness or purposelessness of life or of the universe.
see: Rose, Gillian. 1984. Dialectic of Nihilism; Carr, Karen L. 1988. The Banalization of Nihilism; Pope John-Paul II. 1995. Evangelium vitae: Il valore e l'inviolabilita delta vita umana. Milan: Paoline Editoriale Libri."
Phillips, Robert. Deconstructing the Mass. Latin Mass Magazine. 1999, (Winter). (原始內容存檔於2004-04-17). For deconstructionists, not only is there no truth to know, there is no self to know it and so there is no soul to save or lose." and "In following the Enlightenment to its logical end, deconstruction reaches nihilism. The meaning of human life is reduced to whatever happens to interest us at the moment...
Pratt, Alan. "Existential Nihilism | Nihilism (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)." Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 存档副本. [2005-08-11]. (原始內容存檔於2010-04-12).: Existential nihilism is "the notion that life has no intrinsic meaning or value, and it is, no doubt, the most commonly used and understood sense of the word today."
Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi [1](頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館). entry by George di Giovanni on the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy website