Emily Dickinson Lexicon

NICH, or NICHE, n. [Fr. niche; Sp. and Port. nicho; It. niechia, properly a nook, corner, and nicchie, a shell. It seems to be a different orthography of nook.]

A cavity, hollow or recess within the thickness of a wall, for a statue or bust. Pope.

NI'CHAR, n.

A plant. Miller.

NICH'ED, a. nichd.

Placed in a niche. Sedgwick.

NICK, et. [Sw. nick; Dan. nix; D. knik, a nod; G. nicken, to nod; genick, the nape; genicke, a continual nodding. The word seems to signify a point, from shooting forward.]

1. The exact point of tame required by necessity or convenience; the critical time. L'Estrange.
2. [G. knick, a flaw.] A notch or score for keeping an account; a reckoning. [Obs.] Shak.
3. A winning throw. Prior.

NICK, n.

In the northern mythology, an evil spirit of the water; hence the modem vulgar phrase, Old Nick, the evil one.

NICK, v.t.

1. To hit; to touch luckily; to perform by a slight artifice used at the lucky time.
2. To cut in nicks or notches. [See Notch.] Shak. The just reason of doing things must be nicked, and all accidents improved. L'Estrange.
3. To suit, as lattices cut in nicks. [Obs.] Camden.
4. To defeat or cozen, as at dice; to disappoint by some trick or unexpected turn. [Obs.] Shak.

NICK, v.t. [G. knicken, to flaw.]

To notch or make an incision in a horse's tail. to make him carry it higher.

NICK'AR-TREE, n.

A tree of the genus Guilandina, which grows in the East and West Indies, and bears a nut of the size of a small nutmeg.

NICKED, pp.

1. Hit; touched luckily.
2. Notched, or made an incision in, as in a horse's tail.

NICKEL, n.

A metal of a white or reddish white color, of great hardness, very difficult to be purified, always magnetic, and when perfectly pure, malleable. It is generally obtained from its sulphuret.

NICK'ER, n.

One who watches for opportunities to pilfer or practice knavery. Arbuthnot.

NICK'-KNACKS, n.

Trifles.

NICK'NAME, n. [In Fr. nique is a term of contempt. In G. necken is to banter. In Ch. {foreign} signifies to surname, to call by a name of reproach.]

A name given incontempt, derision or reproach; an opprobrious appellation. Bacon.

NICK'NAME, v.t.

To give a name of reproach; to call by an opprobrious appellation. You nickname virtue vice. Shak.

NICK'NAM-ED, pp.

Named in derision.

NICK'NAM-LNG, ppr.

Calling by a name in contempt or derision.

NIC-O-LAI-TAN, n.

One of a sect in the ancient Christian church, so named from Nicolas, a deacon of the church of Jerusalem. They held that all married women should be common, to prevent jealousy. They are not charged with erroneous opinions respecting God, but with licentious practices. Rev. ii.

NI-CO'TIAN, a.

Pertaining to or denoting tobacco; and as a noun, tobacco; so called from Nicol, who first introduced it into France, A. D. 1560.

NIC-O-TIAN'I-NA, or NIC-O-TIA'NINE, n.

A concrete or solid oil obtained from tobacco, and one of its active principles. It smells like tobacco smoke, arid tastes bitterash and slightly aromatic.

NIC'O-TIN, n.

An alkaloid obtained from tobacco, and one of its actave principles. In its purest state, it is in small crystaline plates, which rapidly absorb moisture and liquefy. Its taste is very acrid, and continues long in the mouth.

NIC'TATE, v.i. [L. nicto, to wink]

To wink. Ray.

NIC'TA-TING, or NIC'TI-TA-TING, ppr.

or a. Winking. The nictitating membrane is a thin membrane by which the process of winking is performed in certain animals.

NIC-TA'TION, n.

The act of winking.

NIDE, n. [L. nidus, a nest.]

A brood; as, a nide of pheasants. [Not in use.]

NIDG'ET, n.

A dastard. [Not in use.] Camden.