nice
English
editAlternative forms
editPronunciation
edit- enPR: nīs, IPA(key): /naɪs/
- (India) IPA(key): /nɑɪs/, /nɑjs/
- (Falkland Islands English) IPA(key): /nəɪs/
Audio (US): (file) - Rhymes: -aɪs
- Homophone: gneiss
Etymology 1
editFrom Middle English nyce, nice, nys, from Old French nice, niche, nisce (“simple, foolish, ignorant”), from Latin nescius (“ignorant, not knowing”); compare nesciō (“to know not, be ignorant of”), from ne (“not”) sciō (“to know”).
Adjective
editnice (comparative nicer, superlative nicest)
- (chiefly informal) Pleasant, satisfactory. [from 18th c.]
- 1998, “Who Let the Dogs Out?”, performed by Baha Men:
- When the party was nice, the party was jumpin' (Hey, Yippie, Yi, Yo)
- 2008 April 19, Rachel Cooke, quoting David Lodge, “Nice work”, in The Observer[1], →ISSN:
- What's difficult is when you think someone is saying something nice about you, but you're not quite sure.
- (chiefly informal) Of a person: friendly, attractive. [from 18th c.]
- Respectable; virtuous. [from 18th c.]
- What is a nice person like you doing in a place like this?
- 1995, Nick Hornby, High Fidelity, London: Victor Gollancz, →ISBN, page 14:
- She was so nice, in fact, that she wouldn't let me put my hand underneath or even on top of her bra, and so I finished with her, although obviously I didn't tell her why.
- (with and, chiefly informal) Shows that the given adjective is desirable, or acts as a mild intensifier; pleasantly, quite. [from 18th c.]
- The soup is nice and hot.
- 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter VIII, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
- We toted in the wood and got the fire going nice and comfortable. Lord James still set in one of the chairs and Applegate had cabbaged the other and was hugging the stove.
- (chiefly informal) Giving a favorable review or having a favorable impression.
- For Candy Crush Saga, the critics were far nicer than the audience (7.9/10 vs. 3.2/10). [2]
- (chiefly informal) Showing refinement or delicacy, proper, seemly
- a nice way of putting it
- (obsolete) Silly, ignorant; foolish. [14th–17th c.]
- c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:
- Old fashions please me best; I am not so nice
To change true rules for odd inventions.
- (now rare) Particular in one's conduct; scrupulous, painstaking; choosy. [from 14th c.]
- 1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 2, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC:
- There is nothing he seemed to be more carefull of than of his honesty, and observe a kinde of decencie of his person, and orderly decorum in his habits, were it on foot or on horsebacke. He was exceeding nice in performing his word or promise.
- 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling:
- Mr Blifil, I am confident, understands himself better than to think of seeing my niece any more this morning, after what hath happened. Women are of a nice contexture; and our spirits, when disordered, are not to be recomposed in a moment.
- 1999, Sigmund Freud, translated by Joyce Crick, The Interpretation of Dreams, Oxford, published 2008, page 83:
- But if I dispense with the dreams of neurotics, my main material, I cannot be too nice [translating wählerisch] in my dealings with the remainder.
- (dated) Having particular tastes; fussy, fastidious. [from 14th c.]
- 1898, Joseph Bosworth, T. Northcote Toller, “cís”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary[3], 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 156:
- Choice, nice in eating; fastidiosus in edendo.
- (obsolete) Particular as regards rules or qualities; strict. [16th–19th c.]
- 1815 December (indicated as 1816), [Jane Austen], chapter 14, in Emma: […], volume II, London: […] [Charles Roworth and James Moyes] for John Murray, →OCLC:
- “Well, my dear,” he deliberately began, “considering we never saw her before, she seems a very pretty sort of young lady; and I dare say she was very much pleased with you. She speaks a little too quick. A little quickness of voice there is which rather hurts the ear. But I believe I am nice; I do not like strange voices; and nobody speaks like you and poor Miss Taylor. ..."
- 1818, Jane Austen, chapter 16, in Persuasion:
- "Good company requires only birth, education and manners, and with regard to education is not very nice. Birth and good manners are essential."
- Showing or requiring great precision or sensitive discernment; subtle. [from 16th c.]
- 1974, Lawrence Durrell, Monsieur, Faber & Faber, published 1992, page 131:
- It would be a nice theological point to try and establish whether Ophis is Moslem or gnostic.
- 2006, Clive James, North Face of Soho, Picador, published 2007, page 242:
- Why it should have attained such longevity is a nice question.
- (obsolete) Easily injured; delicate; dainty.
- (obsolete) Doubtful, as to the outcome; risky. [16th–19th c.]
- c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:
- [W]ere it good / To ſet the exact wealth of al our ſtates / Al at one caſt? to ſet ſo rich a maine / On the nice hazard of one doubtfull houre?
- Is it good / To bet all of our wealth / On one throw of the dice? To place so high a stake / On the risky hazard of one doubtful hour?
- 1822 July 28, T. Creevey, Reminiscences:
- It has been a damned nice thing - the nearest run thing you ever saw in your life.
Usage notes
editSometimes used sarcastically to mean the opposite or to connote excess:
- 1710, Jonathan Swift, The Examiner No. XIV:
- I have strictly observed this rule, and my imagination this minute represents before me a certain great man famous for this talent, to the constant practice of which he owes his twenty years’ reputation of the most skilful head in England, for the management of nice affairs.
- 1930, H.M. Walker, The Laurel-Hardy Murder Case:
- Here's another nice mess you've gotten us into.
- 1973, Cockerel Chorus, Nice One, Cyril!:
- Nice one, Cyril!
Synonyms
edit- (easy to like: person): charming, delightful, friendly, kind, lovely, pleasant, sweet
- (easy to like: thing): charming, delightful, lovely, pleasant
- (having a pleasant taste or aroma): appetising/appetizing, delicious, moreish (informal), scrummy (slang), scrumptious (slang), tasty
- (subtle): fine, subtle
Antonyms
edit- (antonym(s) of “easy to like: person”): horrible, horrid, nasty
- (antonym(s) of “easy to like: thing”): horrible, horrid, nasty
- (antonym(s) of “having a pleasant taste or aroma”): awful, disgusting, foul, horrible, horrid, nasty, nauseating, putrid, rancid, rank, sickening, distasteful, gross, unsatisfactory
- (antonym(s) of “respectable; virtuous”): naughty
Derived terms
edit- have a nice day
- have a nice day syndrome
- have a nice life
- make nice
- Minnesota nice
- nice and adjective
- nice and easy
- nice as ninepence
- nice as pie
- nice-but-dim
- nice cream
- nice guy
- nice guys finish last
- nice guy syndrome
- nice knowing you
- nice-looking
- nicely
- nicen
- nice-nelly
- nice Nelly
- nice-Nelly
- nice-nellyism
- nice-Nellyism
- niceness
- nice-nice
- nice one
- nice-to-have
- nice to meet you
- nice try
- nicety
- nice weather for ducks
- nice work if you can get it
- nicey-nice
- play nice
- sugar and spice and everything nice
- this is why we can't have nice things
Related terms
editDescendants
edit- → Dutch: nice
- → German: nice
- → Danish: nice
- → Japanese: ナイス
- → Polish: najs
- → Swedish: najs, nice
- → Norwegian:
- Norwegian Bokmål: nice
Translations
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Adverb
editnice (comparative nicer, superlative nicest)
- (colloquial) Nicely.
- Children, play nice.
- He dresses real nice.
- 2002, Gina Riley, Jane Turner, That's Unusual: Scripts from Kath and Kim, Series 2, page 245:
- This riesling's going down nice.
Interjection
editnice!
- Used to signify a job well done.
- Nice! I couldn't have done better.
- Used to signify approval.
- Is that your new car? Nice!
Translations
edit
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Noun
editnice (uncountable)
- niceness.
- 2000, Dana Stabenow, Midnight Come Again, →ISBN, page 111:
- She had refused as kindly as she know how, using up as much nice as she had energy for because she was glad of his company when three o'clock rolled around and she started thinking about September.
- 2013, Todd Whitaker, What Great Teachers Do Differently: 17 Things That Matter Most, →ISBN:
- We could debate forever about whether we have enough of one or too much of another. But I know one thing for sure: We never have too much nice.
- 2014, Jean Illsley Clarke, Connie Dawson, David Bredehoft, How Much Is Too Much?, →ISBN:
- It is the absence of rules and too much nice that are more likely to produce terror.
Etymology 2
editName of a Unix program used to invoke a script or program with a specified priority, with the implication that running at a lower priority is "nice" (kind, etc.) because it leaves more resources for others.
Verb
editnice (third-person singular simple present nices, present participle nicing, simple past and past participle niced)
- (transitive, computing, Unix) To run a process with a specified (usually lower) priority.
Derived terms
editFurther reading
edit- “nice”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “nice”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
- “nice”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
- Nice at NiceDefinition.com
Anagrams
editCzech
editPronunciation
editNoun
editnice
Anagrams
editDutch
editEtymology
editAdjective
editnice (used only predicatively, not comparable)
French
editEtymology
editInherited from Old French nice, inherited from Latin nescius.
Pronunciation
editAdjective
editnice (plural nices)
- (archaic) candid, naive
- 1907, Colette, La retraite sentimentale, page 41:
- Oui, crédulement, vous ne comprenez pas? Entendez donc que j’ai cru, plus nice qu’une pensionnaire, au pouvoir exclusif de cet inconnu que je fuyais !
- (please add an English translation of this quotation)
Derived terms
editFurther reading
edit- “nice”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
German
editEtymology
editUnadapted borrowing from English nice.
Pronunciation
editAdjective
editnice (strong nominative masculine singular nicer, comparative (rare) nicer, superlative (extremely rare) am nicesten)
- (colloquial) good, nice
- 2020 December 8, Sara Tomšić, “Die Zukunft, das ist die grüne Samtcouch”, in ZEITmagazin[4]:
- Na gut. Und auch, wenn ich nur das eine Regal hatte – in der Schule konnte ich durch dich mitreden. Ja, Pax, voll nice und geräumig, der Poäng-Sessel, mega gemütlich.
- Fine. And even if I only had that one shelf – thanks to you, I had a say in conversations at school. Oh, Pax, all nice and spacious, and the Poäng armchair, super comfortable.
- 2021, “Feeling”, performed by Fatoni & Dexter:
- Ich steh' im Club / Seh' ziemlich nice aus / Ah, wobei, die Schuhe / Ne, scheiß drauf, ich seh' nice aus
- I'm at the club / Lookin' pretty good / Actually, these shoes / Nah, fuck it, I look good
Declension
editnumber & gender | singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
masculine | feminine | neuter | |||
predicative | er ist nice | sie ist nice | es ist nice | sie sind nice | |
strong declension (without article) |
nominative | nicer | nice | nices | nice |
genitive | nicen | nicer | nicen | nicer | |
dative | nicem | nicer | nicem | nicen | |
accusative | nicen | nice | nices | nice | |
weak declension (with definite article) |
nominative | der nice | die nice | das nice | die nicen |
genitive | des nicen | der nicen | des nicen | der nicen | |
dative | dem nicen | der nicen | dem nicen | den nicen | |
accusative | den nicen | die nice | das nice | die nicen | |
mixed declension (with indefinite article) |
nominative | ein nicer | eine nice | ein nices | (keine) nicen |
genitive | eines nicen | einer nicen | eines nicen | (keiner) nicen | |
dative | einem nicen | einer nicen | einem nicen | (keinen) nicen | |
accusative | einen nicen | eine nice | ein nices | (keine) nicen |
number & gender | singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
masculine | feminine | neuter | |||
predicative | er ist nicer1 | sie ist nicer1 | es ist nicer1 | sie sind nicer1 | |
strong declension (without article) |
nominative | nicerer1 | nicere1 | niceres1 | nicere1 |
genitive | niceren1 | nicerer1 | niceren1 | nicerer1 | |
dative | nicerem1 | nicerer1 | nicerem1 | niceren1 | |
accusative | niceren1 | nicere1 | niceres1 | nicere1 | |
weak declension (with definite article) |
nominative | der nicere1 | die nicere1 | das nicere1 | die niceren1 |
genitive | des niceren1 | der niceren1 | des niceren1 | der niceren1 | |
dative | dem niceren1 | der niceren1 | dem niceren1 | den niceren1 | |
accusative | den niceren1 | die nicere1 | das nicere1 | die niceren1 | |
mixed declension (with indefinite article) |
nominative | ein nicerer1 | eine nicere1 | ein niceres1 | (keine) niceren1 |
genitive | eines niceren1 | einer niceren1 | eines niceren1 | (keiner) niceren1 | |
dative | einem niceren1 | einer niceren1 | einem niceren1 | (keinen) niceren1 | |
accusative | einen niceren1 | eine nicere1 | ein niceres1 | (keine) niceren1 |
1Rare.
1Extremely rare.
Further reading
edit- “nice” in Duden online
- “nice” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
- “nice”, in Online-Wortschatz-Informationssystem Deutsch (in German), Mannheim: Leibniz-Institut für Deutsche Sprache, 2008–
Middle English
editAdjective
editnice
- Alternative form of nyce
Swedish
editEtymology
editAdjective
editnice
Turkish
editEtymology 1
editFrom Ottoman Turkish نیچه (nice, “how much”), from Proto-Turkic *nēče, equative form of *nē (“what”). See ne (“what”), cognate to Karakhanid ناجا (nēčē, “how much”).
Pronunciation
editAdjective
editnice
Synonyms
editEtymology 2
editUltimately from Proto-Turkic *nē- (“interrogative archetype”).
Adverb
editnice
Synonyms
edit- English 1-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with audio links
- Rhymes:English/aɪs
- Rhymes:English/aɪs/1 syllable
- English terms with homophones
- English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *skey-
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms derived from Old French
- English terms derived from Latin
- English lemmas
- English adjectives
- English informal terms
- English terms with quotations
- English terms with usage examples
- English terms with obsolete senses
- English terms with rare senses
- English dated terms
- English adverbs
- English colloquialisms
- English interjections
- English nouns
- English uncountable nouns
- English verbs
- English transitive verbs
- en:Computing
- en:Personality
- Czech terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Czech/ɪtsɛ
- Rhymes:Czech/ɪtsɛ/2 syllables
- Czech non-lemma forms
- Czech noun forms
- Dutch terms borrowed from English
- Dutch terms derived from English
- Dutch lemmas
- Dutch adjectives
- Dutch predicative-only adjectives
- Dutch slang
- Dutch terms with usage examples
- French terms inherited from Old French
- French terms derived from Old French
- French terms inherited from Latin
- French terms derived from Latin
- French 1-syllable words
- French terms with IPA pronunciation
- French terms with audio links
- Rhymes:French/is
- Rhymes:French/is/1 syllable
- French lemmas
- French adjectives
- French terms with archaic senses
- French terms with quotations
- German terms borrowed from English
- German unadapted borrowings from English
- German terms derived from English
- German 1-syllable words
- German terms with IPA pronunciation
- German terms with audio links
- German lemmas
- German adjectives
- German colloquialisms
- German terms with quotations
- Middle English lemmas
- Middle English adjectives
- Swedish terms borrowed from English
- Swedish terms derived from English
- Swedish lemmas
- Swedish adjectives
- Swedish slang
- Turkish terms inherited from Ottoman Turkish
- Turkish terms derived from Ottoman Turkish
- Turkish terms inherited from Proto-Turkic
- Turkish terms derived from Proto-Turkic
- Turkish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Turkish lemmas
- Turkish adjectives
- Turkish adverbs
- Turkish dialectal terms
- Turkish poetic terms