nick

NIK/nɪk/

20 meanings of nick

1
damage surfacenouncountable
A small cut in the surface of something.
A single nick in the blade can make the knife tear tomatoes instead of slicing them.
He came out of the bathroom with a nick on his jaw and a scrap of tissue stuck to it.
Similarcut, notch, chip, scratch
2
verbtransitive
To make a small cut or notch in something, or to cut, scratch or mar it slightly.
She nicked herself on a chipped glass while doing the dishes.
Be careful not to nick the paint when you move the table.
Similarcut, notch, scratch, chip, graze
3
stealverbcolloquialCommonwealthIrelandUKtransitive
To take something that is not yours without permission; to steal it.
Somebody's nicked the last of the biscuits from the tin.
He'll nick anything that isn't nailed down.
UsageOften used in the present perfect (someone's nicked my phone). Don't confuse it with get nicked (be arrested).
Similarsteal, pinch, swipe, filch, nab
4
critical momentnoun
A particular place or point thought of as marked by a notch; the exact point or critical moment.
The goalkeeper got a hand to the ball in the nick of time.
Here ended, then, / Progress this way. When, in the very nick / Of giving up, one time more, came a click / As when a trap shuts – you're inside the den!
1856, Robert Browning, “‘Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came.’”
UsageToday mostly in in the nick of time, often after just.
Note
Time is treated here as if it could be notched: the noun comes from Late Middle English nik, "notch, tally". On its own the sense has faded, but in the nick of time keeps it in daily use. Older writers varied it freely: James Howell writes of a thread cut "in the very nicke" (1640), and Dickens has "the right nick of time" (1843).
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 5 facts
The noun derives from Late Middle English nik, meaning notch or tally. en.wiktionary.org
James Howell used "in the very nicke" of cutting a thread in Dodona’s Grove, published in 1640. en.wiktionary.org
Dodona’s Grove was first published in 1640. cowley.lib.virginia.edu
Dickens used "the right nick of time" in the narration of A Christmas Carol. en.wikisource.org
A Christmas Carol was first published in 1843. en.wikisource.org
5
online namenounabbreviationclipping
Short for nickname: the name a user goes by online, especially in chat systems such as IRC.
Someone had already registered my usual nick on the network, so I added a number to it.
The client highlights any message that mentions your nick.
Note
On IRC and other chat networks the clipped form is the normal word, naming the handle other users see. It became a command, /nick, and it forms compounds of its own: a reserved nick, nick length, nick highlighting. Donald Rose's Internet Chat Quick Tour (1995) warns that nine characters is the maximum nick length.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
Nick is a clipping of nickname. en.wiktionary.org
IRC has a /nick command for changing the nickname visible to other users. en.wiktionary.org
Donald Rose wrote Internet Chat Quick Tour, published in 1995. ftp.math.utah.edu
Rose’s book warns that the maximum nick length is nine characters. en.wiktionary.org
6
conditionnouncolloquialCommonwealthIrelandUKuncountable
Condition or state, often in the phrases in good nick and in bad nick.
The house needed a new roof but was otherwise in decent nick.
After a fortnight of training, the squad is in great nick for Saturday's match.
UsageUsually in + adjective + nick: in good nick, in decent nick.
Similarshape, condition, form, fettle
Note
It suits things and people alike, from a cheap used car or a minster founded in 670 to partygoers after a long night, and The Economist found older tech stocks "in decent nick" in 2022.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
The Economist described older technology stocks as "in decent nick" in 2022. en.wiktionary.org
7
police stationnounslangCommonwealthIrelandUKcountable
A police station or a prison.
After the fight outside the pub, three lads ended up at the local nick.
He came out of the nick older, quieter, and determined never to go back.
Similarjail, prison, clink, slammer
8
arrestverbslangCommonwealthIrelandUKtransitive
To arrest someone and take them into custody.
Plain-clothes officers waited outside the pub to nick him as he left.
He got nicked twice for shoplifting before he turned eighteen.
UsageOften passive: get nicked, got nicked for shoplifting.
Similararrest, nab, collar, bust, pinch
Oppositerelease
9
edged shotnouncountable
In cricket, a slight deflection of the ball off the edge of the bat, often carried to the wicketkeeper for a catch.
Replays showed a faint nick before the ball reached the keeper's gloves.
A nick to first slip ended the opener's innings on the first morning.
Similaredge
Note
Often the nick is heard rather than seen. David Fraser pictures the umpire, facing the blur of a fast bowler, "listening for a nick of the bat", because whether there was one decides if a catch behind the wicket is out. It is usually placed by where it went: a nick to the keeper, a nick to first slip.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
David Fraser describes an umpire facing a fast bowler's blur and uses the exact phrase quoted. en.wiktionary.org
Bat contact determines whether an otherwise fair catch behind the wicket dismisses the batter. lords.org
10
edged shotverbtransitive
In cricket, to hit the ball with the edge of the bat so that it is deflected only slightly.
Openers who nick deliveries outside off stump rarely last long against good swing bowling.
Two balls later, I nick one and it carries beautifully to Peter Bowler at first slip, a complete dolly catch, and he drops it.
2013, Ian Botham, with Dean Wilson
Similaredge, snick
Note
Cricket still uses the verb freely: in Beefy's Cricket Tales (2013) Steve James recalls, "I nick one and it carries beautifully to Peter Bowler at first slip", who drops it. The object is usually one, it, or a delivery, and the story is told by where the ball goes next: to the keeper, to slip, or through the slips for four.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts
Beefy's Cricket Tales is a 2013 book credited to Ian Botham. simonandschuster.com
The recollection is Steve James's, in the section 'Steve James – Fine Dining'; Botham is the book's credited author. en.wiktionary.org
The quoted wording appears in the book, and Peter Bowler drops the catch at first slip. en.wiktionary.org
11
court cornernouncountable
In squash, real tennis, and racquetball, the point at which a wall of the court meets the floor.
A drop shot that dies in the nick leaves the opponent nothing to hit.
He spent the whole session driving the ball low into the back-corner nick.
Note
Players aim for the nick because a ball landing where wall meets floor tends to roll out flat instead of bouncing up, leaving almost nothing to hit. A shot is played into the nick or dies in it, and a slow drop that finds it can end the rally as surely as a hard drive.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
Players seek the nick because it can make the ball roll along the floor without bouncing, preventing a return. arxiv.org
A slow drop into the nick can end the rally. hkfc.com

12
verbobsoletetransitive
To give someone a nickname or call them by it; to name or style them.
For Warbecke as you nicke him, came to me / Commended by the States of Chriſtendome.
1634, [John Ford], The Chronicle Historie of Perkin Warbeck. A Strange Truth.
Note
As a verb the clipping could hold a name at arm's length: in John Ford's Perkin Warbeck (1634), "Warbecke as you nicke him" means the man you choose to call Warbeck. The verb has long dropped out of use, while the same clipping lives on as the chat-room handle.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 5 facts
Nick in this sense is a clipping of nickname. en.wiktionary.org
John Ford wrote Perkin Warbeck. en.wikipedia.org
Perkin Warbeck was first published in 1634. celm.folger.edu
The play contains the exact quoted wording. en.wiktionary.org
The phrase means the man the addressees choose to call Warbeck; King James speaks the line. elizabethandrama.org
13
printing groovenoundatedcountable
In printing, a notch cut across the shank of a piece of type that helps the compositor set it correctly in the stick and sort it during distribution.
The compositor set each letter in the composing stick with its nick facing up.
Type from a different font often has its nick in a different place, so stray letters are easy to spot.
Similarnotch
Note
Hand-set metal type came with its nick: William Savage's Dictionary of the Art of Printing (1841) describes it as a hollow cast across the shank. It let the compositor see at once which end of a letter was the bottom as it lay in the case, and it told sorts and sizes apart. Some type even had a deep dovetail nick that locked onto a metal edge.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts
William Savage wrote A Dictionary of the Art of Printing, first published in 1841. gutenberg.org
Hand-set type had a hollow nick cast across its shank, used to distinguish sorts and sizes and identify the bottom of the letter in the case. gutenberg.org
Some type had a deep dovetail nick that fitted onto a metal edge to prevent displacement. en.wiktionary.org
14
horse tailverbraretransitive
To make one or more crosswise cuts on the underside of a horse's tail so that the animal carries it higher.
The dealer had nicked the gelding's tail so it would be carried high and showy in the ring.
Few owners today would nick a horse's tail just for the look of it.
Note
Farriers did this alongside docking, and the object can be the tail or the whole horse. Richard Mason's Gentleman's New Pocket Farrier writes of "nicking a horse" and calls the cutting by far the easiest part, the curing afterward the harder. A farriery manual printed in 1815 condemned "docking and nicking the tail" as a barbarous custom.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 6 facts
Farriers performed nicking. gutenberg.org
Nicking and docking were associated practices. gutenberg.org
Richard Mason wrote The Gentleman's New Pocket Farrier. lva.virginia.gov
Mason uses 'nicking a horse' and describes nicking itself as easier than curing and pullying. en.wiktionary.org
Mason says the subsequent curing requires considerable attention and trouble. en.wiktionary.org
A farriery manual printed in 1815 condemned docking and nicking the tail as a barbarous custom. en.wiktionary.org
15
verbobsoletefigurativelytransitive
To hit at the exact point or the critical moment; to touch rightly or strike at precisely the right time.
Note
Here the verb borrows the "exact moment" noun: to nick a time or a point was to catch it precisely. Roger L'Estrange, in his Fables of Aesop (1692), holds that "the Just Season of Doing Things must be Nick'd". The use is long gone, and a modern reader is apt to hear the opposite, a glancing cut rather than a clean hit.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts
To nick a time or point meant to catch or strike it precisely. en.wiktionary.org
Roger L'Estrange's version of Fables of Aesop was first published in 1692. remnanttrust.org
The quoted words occur in L'Estrange's own reflection accompanying the fable 'A Horse and an Asse'. en.wiktionary.org
16
verbobsoletetransitive
In dice games, to throw or turn up a particular number; more broadly, to hit upon something.
My old luck: I never nick'd ſeven that I did not throw ames ace three times following.
1773, [Oliver] Goldsmith, She Stoops to Conquer
Note
This is the language of hazard, an old dice game: the caster called a main, and to nick it was to throw a winning number straight away. Goldsmith's She Stoops to Conquer (1773) has the loser's lament, "I never nick'd seven that I did not throw ames ace three times following." The looser sense, to hit upon, keeps the feel of landing exactly what was wanted.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 7 facts
Hazard is an old dice game. en.wikipedia.org
The caster declared a main; nicking meant winning immediately. en.wikipedia.org
Nicking on the first throw wins. en.wikipedia.org
Goldsmith wrote She Stoops to Conquer, first published in 1773. embta.english.ucsb.edu
The quoted wording occurs in Act III. en.wiktionary.org
The lament is spoken by Marlow, figuratively describing his interrupted courtship. gutenberg.org
The broader meaning is to hit upon something. en.wiktionary.org
17
verbobsoletetransitive
To fit or match something, as notches on two pieces fit each other; to tally with.
Note
Two halves of a notched tally fit only when their nicks line up, and this verb is built on that match. William Camden, writing on wordplay in 1605, uses it for words "nicking and resembling one the other", alike in sound but unlike in sense. It is long obsolete and now met only in reading.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
Matching halves of a split tally have corresponding notches. en.wikipedia.org
William Camden's relevant work was first published in 1605. celm.folger.edu
Camden used the quoted phrase for words resembling one another in sound but differing in sense. en.wiktionary.org
The quotation's exact wording is 'nicking and resembling one the other'. en.wiktionary.org
18
nounarchaic
A nix or nixie, a spirit that lives in water.
Note
Folklore keeps a separate word here that only shares the spelling: it is a variant of nix or nixie, the water spirit. The 1879 English translation of Viktor Rydberg's study of medieval magic sets it among imps, giants, trolls, elves and hobgoblins. It is archaic now and reads clearly only in such company; anywhere else a reader will take it for a small cut.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
The folklore sense is a separate homonym, a variant of nix or nixie. en.wiktionary.org
A nix is a water spirit. en.wiktionary.org
Rydberg's Swedish work first appeared in 1864; 1879 is the publication year of its English translation. vrsidor.se
Rydberg's discussion lists nicks alongside imps, giants, trolls, elves and hobgoblins. gutenberg.org
19
noun
In genetics, a break in one strand of double-stranded DNA, the point where nick translation begins.
20
verb
In mining, to make a cut along the side of the face being worked.

Practice

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Origins

Meanings 1–4, 6–11, 13–17

Its source is the Late Middle English noun nik ("notch, tally, nock of an arrow"), whose own origin is unknown. It may be linked to nock, the notch on a bow or arrow that holds the bowstring, but this has not been clearly shown. The verb seems to have been formed from the noun, even though some of its senses are recorded before the noun's. Look-alike Germanic words such as Danish nikke and German nicken ("to nod") or German knicken ("to bend, to break") have no clearly proven connection.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 9 facts

Nick derives from the Late Middle English noun nik. en.wiktionary.org
Middle English nik meant notch, tally, or the nock of an arrow. en.wiktionary.org
The earlier origin is unknown. en.wiktionary.org
A connection with nock has been suggested but is unproved. en.wiktionary.org
A nock is a groove on a bow holding the bowstring or a notch on an arrow fitting the bowstring. en.wiktionary.org
The verb apparently derives from the noun, although some verb senses have earlier recorded evidence. en.wiktionary.org
Danish nikke means to nod. en.wiktionary.org
German nicken means to nod. en.wiktionary.org
German knicken means to bend or break, and no connection between nick and the listed Germanic words has been clearly established. en.wiktionary.org

Meanings 5, 12

A shortening of nickname.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 1 fact

Nick is a shortening of nickname. en.wiktionary.org

Meaning 18

A variant of nix or nixie.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 1 fact

Nick is a variant of nix or nixie. en.wiktionary.org