Zr- and (Zr + F)-doped ZnO nanopowders were synthesized using a simple soft chemical route having Zr and F doping concentrations as 3 and 10 at.%, respectively. The structural, morphological, optical, magnetic and antibacterial properties of these samples are studied and compared with those of undoped ZnO. The X-ray diffractometer studies reveal that the synthesized nanopowders exhibit hexagonal wurtzite structure of ZnO, and the crystallite size increases after doping. The field effect scanning electron microscope and transition electron microscopy images show that the synthesized ZnO nanopowders have reduced grain size after doping. The dopant-induced room temperature ferromagnetism is observed from vibrating sample magnetometer studies. Enhancement in the antibacterial efficiency due to doping against three different bacterial strains, viz. Bacillus subtillis, Staphylococus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa are studied and reported.