next 
This year, on the last day of November, being the last 
day of the next week, there was heard several loud noises, 
or reports. ff. Morton, New England's Memorial, p. 325. 
r repor! 
This is in order to have something to brag of the next 
time. Congreve, Way of the World, i. 9. 
3f. Nearest or shortest in point of distance or 
of time ; most direct in respect of the way or 
means. 
This messager on morwe, whan he wook, 
Unto the castel halt the nexte wey. 
Chaucer, Man of Law's Tale, 1. 709. 
A prophet I, madam ; and I speak the truth the next 
way. Shak., All's Well, i. 3. 3. 
The next way home 's the farthest way about. 
Quarles, Emblems, iv. 2. 
4. The last preceding. 
Graunte us sone 
The same thing, the same bone, 
That to thise nexte folke thou hast don. 
Chawer, House of Fame, 1. 1775. 
Each following day 
Became the next day's master, till the last 
Made former wonders its. 
Shak., Hen. VIII., i. 1. 17. 
Next door to. See door. Next friend, in law. See 
friend. Next Of kin. See Wnl. Next suit, in cards, 
the other suit of the same color. = Syn. Nearest, Next. See 
neari. 
nextert, . [Irreg. < next + -er 3 , compar. suffix.] 
Same as next. 
In the nexter night. 
Gascoigne, Philomene (ed. Arber), p. 111. 
nextlyt (nekst'li), adv. In the next place ; next. 
The thing nextly chosen or preferred when a man wills 
to walk. Edwards, Freedom of the Will, i. 1. 
nextness (nekst'nes), n. The state or fact of 
being next, or immediately near or contiguous ; 
contiguity. 
These elements of feeling have relations of nextness or 
contiguity in space, which are exemplified by the sight- 
perceptions of contiguous points. 
W. K. Clifford, Lectures, I. 244. 
next-ways (nekst'waz), adv. Directly. Hal- 
Uwell. [Prov. Eng.] 
nexunl (nek'sum), n. [L., an obligation, con- 
tract, neut. of nexus, pp. of nectere, to bind to- 
gether: see nexible.] In Bom. law: (a) The 
contract, and the public ceremony manifesting 
it, by which, under the form of a sale with 
scales and copper, the ostensible pecuniary 
consideration, a debtor who was unable to pay 
became the bondman of his creditor. (6) The 
obligation or servitude, usually implying close 
confinement on the creditor's premises, and 
power of chaining and flogging. The contract 
or obligation was sometimes dependent on or 
only enforceable by judicial proceedings. 
nexus 1 (nek'sus),i.; pi. nexus (-BUS). [Qi.nexus 
(nexu-), a tie, bond, connection, < nectere, tie 
together, bind: see nexiblc."] 1. Tie; connec- 
tion; interdependence existing between the 
several members or individuals of a series or 
group. 2. In medieval music, melodic motion 
by skips. 
nexus 2 (nek'sus), n. ; pi. nexi (-si). [L. nexus, 
pp. of nectere, tie together, bind: see nexible, 
nexum, etc.] In Rom. law : (a) A free-born per- 
son who had contracted the obligation called 
nexum, and thus became liable to be seized by 
his creditor if he failed to pay, and to be com- 
pelled to serve him until the debt was dis- 
charged, (ft) The bond or obligation by which 
such a person was held. 
neyt, adv. and prep. An obsolete form of neiglfi 
and nigh. 
Ng. In chem., the symbol for nonvegium. 
N. G. An abbreviation (a) of National Guard; 
(b) [I. c.] of no good or no go. [In the latter 
use colloq. or slang.] 
N. Gr. An abbreviation of New Greek. 
N. H. G. An abbreviation of New High Ger- 
man. 
nit, n. See ny 1 . 
Ni. In chem., the symbol for nickel. 
Niagara limestone, Niagara shale. See lime- 
stone, shale. 
niare (ni-ar'), n. [Native name.] The African 
or Cape buffalo. See buffalo 1 . 
niast (ni'as), n. [Also niaise, nyas (and corrupt- 
ly eyas, by misdivision of a nias) ; < OF. (also 
F.) niais = Pr. nizaic, niaic = It. nidiace, also 
nidaso, niaso, a young hawk taken in its nest, 
appar. < L. nidus, a nest: see nest 1 , nidus."] 1. 
A young hawk; an eyas. 2. A ninny; a sim- 
pleton. 
Laugh'd at, sweet bird ! is that the scruple ? come, come, 
Thou art a niaise. B. Joneon, Devil is an Ass, i. 3. 
nib 1 (nib), n. [Also knib; a mod. var. of neb, 
perhaps in part due to association with nibble : 
see nib.'] 1. The beak or bill, as of a bird; neb. 
3984 nice 
2. The point of anything, as the pointed end Nicseno-Constantinopolitan (ni-se 'no-kon- 
of a pen or tlie extremity or toe of a crowbar. stan'ti-no-pol'i-tan), a. Of or pertaining to 
3. A small pen of the usual form for insertion Nicasa and to Constantinople; noting the second 
in a penholder. 4. The handle of a scythe- form of the Nicene creed as agreeing with that 
snath, to which it is attached by a sliding ring authorized at Niceea and as promulgated by the 
that can be tightened by a bolt or wedge. E. first council of Constantinople. See Nicene. 
H. Knight. 5. A separate adjustable limb of a Nicaraguan (nik-a-ra'gwan), a. and n. [< Nic- 
permutation-key. E. H. Knight. 6. In the aruijua (see def.) + -aw.] I. a. Of or pertam- 
picker of a loom fitted with a drop-box for car- ing to Nicaragua, a republic in Central Amer- 
rying two or more shuttles, a projection from ica, south of Honduras and north of Costa 
the back side of the picker, working in a groove Eica: as, the Nicaraguan lizard. 
or guide-way, and cooperating with the picker- II. . A native or an inhabitant of Nicaragua. 
spindle to reduce friction and cause the picker Nicaragua wood. See pea cii -wood. 
to strike squarely against the end of the shuttle, niccolic (ni-kol'ik), a. [< NL. niceol-um + 
7. See coffee-nib and cacao. -ic.] Pertaining to or consisting of nickel. 
The seeds [of the cocoa] are reduced to the form of nibs, niccoliferous (nik-o-lif e-rus), a. [< NL. nic- 
which are separated from the shells or husks by the action colum, nickel, + L. ferre = K bear 1 -.} bee 
of a powerful fan blast. Encyc. Brit., VI. 102. mckelifcrous. 
nib 1 (nib), v. t.; pret. and pp. nibbed, ppr. nib- niccolite(nik'o-lit),M. [(.NL,. niccol-um, nickel, 
bing. [< nil 1 , n."] To furnish with a nib or + -jfe2.] Native nickel arsenide, a mineral 
point ; mend or trim the nib of, as a pen. occurring usually massive, of a pale copper-red 
How profoundly would he nib a pen ! color and metallic luster. Also called copper- 
Lamb, South-Sea House, nickel and nickeline. 
nib 2 t (nib), v. i. [A var. of nip 1 . Cf. nibble.'] nice (nis), a. [< ME. nice, nyce, nys, < OF. nice, 
niche, nisce, simple, foolish, ignorant, F. nice, 
simple, foolish, = Pr. nee, nesci = Sp. necio = 
Pg. nescio, foolish, impudent, ignorant, = It. 
ne*cw,ignorant, < L.escis,ignorant,not know- 
ing; cf. nescire, know not, be ignorant of, < ne, 
not, '+ scire, know: see science, and cf. nescients, 
nescient. All the senses proceed from the lit. 
To nibble. 
When the fish begin to nib and bite, 
The moving of the float doth them bewray. 
John Dennys (Arber's Eng. Garner, I. 161). 
Nibban (nib'an), n. The Pali form of Nir- 
vana. 
nibble (nib'l), .; pret. and pp. nibbled, ppr. nib- 
off small bits ; gnaw. velopment which may be compared with that 
All tenderest birds there find a pleasant screen, . . . of fond'*, 'foolish, weakly affectioned, affection- 
Nibble the little cupped flowers, and sing. ate/ etc., of innocent, 'harmless, simple, fool- 
Keats, Sleep and Poetry. igllj i unat i C) > etc., of lewd, 'ignorant, simple, 
The paint brush is made by chewing the end of a reed ru( je, coarse, vile,' etc., of silly, ' happy, blessed, 
is reduced to filaments, and L i nnocen t, foolish, 'etc., andotherwordsin which 
the notion of ' ignorance ' is variously developed 
in opposite directions. Some assume a confu- 
sion of nice with the OF. and F. niais, simple 
(see nias); but this is unnecessary.] If. Igno- 
rant; weak; foolish. 
Now witterly ich am vn-wis & wonderliche nyce, 
Thus vn-hendly & hard mi herte to blame. 
William of Palerne (E. E. T. S.), 1. 491. 
But say that we ben wise and nothing nice. 
Chaucer, Wife of Bath's Tale, L 82. 
I broujte thee bothe god & man in fere; 
Whi were thou so nyce to leete him go? 
Hymns to Virgin, etc. (E. E. T. S.), p. 54. 
2f. Trivial; unimportant. 
The letter was not nice, but full of charge 
Of dear import. Shak., R. and J., v. 2. 18. 
3. Fastidious; very particular or scrupulous; 
dainty ; difficult to please or satisfy ; exacting ; 
squeamish. 
Be not to noyows, to nyce, ne to newfangle ; 
Be not to orped, to overthwarte, & othus thou hate. 
Boo/re of Precedence (E. E. T. S., extra ser.X i. 66. 
'Tis, my Lord, a grave and weighty undertaking, in this 
nice and captious age, to deliver to posterity a three-years 
war. Evelyn, To my Lord Treasurer. 
Lucy. Nay, Sir Lucius, I thought you wa'n't rich enough 
to be so nice .' 
Sir Luc. Upon my word, young woman, you have hit it : 
I am so poor that I can't afford to do a dirty action. 
Sheridan, The Rivals, ii. 2. 
I have seen her (the Duchess of York] veiy much amused 
with jokes, stories, and allusions which would shock a very 
nice person. Greville, Memoirs, Aug. 15, 1818. 
4. Discriminating; critical; discerning; acute. 
We imputed it to a nice & scholasticall curiositie in such 
makers. Puttenhmn, Arte of Eng. Poesie, p. 86. 
Our author, happy in a judge so nice-, 
Produced his play, and begg'd the knight's advice. 
Pope, Essay on Criticism, 1. 273. 
He sings to the wide world and she to her nest- 
In the nice ear of Nature which song is the best ? 
Lowell, Vision of Sir Launfal, i. 
5. Characterized by exactness, accuracy, or 
precision ; formed or performed with precision 
or minuteness and exactness of detail; accu- 
rate; exact; precise: as, wife proportions; nici- 
calculations or workmanship. 
Poetic Justice, with her lifted scale, 
Where, in nice balance, truth wilh gold she weighs. 
Pope, Dunciad, i. 53. 
No pathway meets the wanderer's ken, 
Unless he climb, with footing win', 
A far projecting precipice. 
Scott, L. of the L., 1. 14. 
In the business of life, prompt and decisive action has 
again and again to be taken upon a nice estimate of prob- 
abilities, llimrt, Nature and Thought, p. 17. 
6. Fine; delicate; involving or demanding 
_ scrupulous care or consideration ; subtle ; dif- 
bage-paim. ficult to treat or settle. 
R. Curzon, Monast. in the Levant, p. 88. 
2. To bite very slightly or gently ; bite off small 
pieces of. 
The roving trout . . . 
. . . greedily sucks in the twining bait, 
And tugs and nibbles the fallacious meat. 
Gay, Rural Sports, i. 
3. To catch ; nab. [Slang.] 
The rogue has spied me now ; he nibbled me finely once, 
too. Middleton, Trick to Catch the Old One, i. 4. 
II. intrans. 1. To bite gently; bite off small 
pieces : as, fishes nibble at the bait. 
Thy turfy mountains, where live nibbling sheep, 
And flat meads thatch'd with stover, them to keep. 
Shak., Tempest, iv. 1. 62. 
2. Figuratively, to carp; make a petty attack: 
with at. 
Instead of returning a full answer to my book, he mani- 
festly falls a nibbling at one single passage in it. Tillotgon. 
I saw the critics prepared to nibble at my letter. 
Steele, Tatler, No. 87. 
3f. To fidget the fingers about. 
To nibble with the fingers, as unmannerly boies do with 
their points when they are spoken to. 
Baret,1580. (Halliwett.) 
nibble (nib'l), n. [< nibble, v.] The act of nib- 
bling; a little bite; also, a small morsel or bit. 
Yo'r sheep will be a' folded, a reckon, M easier Pratt, for 
there '11 ne'er be a nibble o' grass to be seen this two month. 
Mrs. Gaskell, Sylvia's Lovers, xii. 
nibbler (nib'ler), n. [< nibble + -er 1 ."} 1. One 
who nibbles; one who bites a little at a time. 
The tender nibbler would not touch the bait. 
Shak., Passionate Pilgrim, 1. 53. 
2. A fish : same as chogset. 
nibbling (nib'ling), n. [Verbal n. of nibble, .] 
1. The act of one who nibbles. 2. In lenn- 
making, the reduction of a glass blank to round- 
ness preparatory to grinding. It is done by means 
of a pair of soft iron pliers called shanks, which crumble 
away the glass from the edges without slipping. Also 
called shankimj. 
nibblingly (nib'ling-li), adv. 
manner. 
niblick (nib'lik), . [Origin obscure.] A 
kind of club used in the game of golf, having 
a dumpy cup-shaped iron head. It is used to 
jerk the ball out of sand, ruts, rough ground, etc . 
nib-nib (nib'nib), n. See bablah. 
nibourt, n. An obsolete form of neighbor. 
nibu (ne'bo), n. [Jap., < ni, two, + bti, a divi- 
sion.] An oblong square-cornered silver coin 
with untrimmed edges, formerly current in 
Japan. 
nibung (nib'ung), n. [Malay.] An elegant 
palm, Oneospenna filamentosa, growing massed 
in swamps in the Malay archipelago, it is a 
In a nibbling 
