kamma noll

Swedish

Etymology

Said to be a metaphor for combing lice out of hair without success. Could also possibly be from an older slang sense ’to get, to earn’, from Tavringer Romani kamma (“to have, to own”), compare kamma hem (“to win, to procure”), from Romani kam- (“to wish, to request”). Related to Sanskrit कामयति (kāmayati, “to wish, to desire”), from *keh₂- (“to desire, wish”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kama ˈnɔl/

Verb

kamma noll (present kammar noll, preterite kammade noll, supine kammat noll, imperative kamma noll)

1. (idiomatic) to get nothing (despite an effort)

References

• “noll”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• Gerd Carling (2005), “kamma”, in Romani i svenskan: Storstadsslang och standardspråk, Stockholm: Carlsson, →ISBN, page 85