nick

Meanings

Noun

• A small cut in a surface.
• Often in the expressions in bad nick and in good nick: condition, state.
• A police station or prison.
• Short form of nickname
• A nix or nixie.

Verb

• To make a nick or notch in; to cut or scratch in a minor way.
• To fit into or suit, as by a correspondence of nicks; to tally with.
• To make a cut at the side of the face.
• To steal.
• To arrest.
• To give or call (someone) by a nickname; to style.

Origin

• The noun is derived from Late Middle English nik ("notch, tally; nock of an arrow"). Its further etymology is unknown; a connection with nock has not been clearly established.
• The verb appears to be derived from the noun, though the available evidence shows that some of the verb senses predate the noun senses. No connection with words in Germanic languages such as Danish nikke ("to nod"), Middle Dutch nicken ("to bend; to bow") (modern Dutch knikken ("to nod")), Middle Low German nicken ("to bend over; to sink"), Middle High German nicken ("to bend; to depress") (modern German nicken ("to nod")), Middle Low German knicken ("to bend; to snap") (modern German knicken ("to bend; to break"), Old Frisian hnekka ("to nod"), and Swedish nicka ("to nod"), has been clearly established.
• From nickname.
• A variant of nix or nixie.