Antonyms for nickel


Grammar : Noun, verb
Spell : nik-uh l
Phonetic Transcription : ˈnɪk əl


Definition of nickel

Origin :
  • whitish metal element, 1755, coined in 1754 by Swedish mineralogist Axel von Cronstedt (1722-1765) from shortening of Swedish kopparnickel "copper-colored ore" (from which it was first obtained), a half-translation of German Kupfernickel, literally "copper demon," from Kupfer (see copper) + Nickel "demon, goblin, rascal" (a pet form of masc. proper name Nikolaus, cf. English Old Nick "the devil;" see Nicholas); the ore so called by miners because it looked like copper but yielded none.
  • Meaning "coin made partly of nickel" is from 1857, when the U.S. introduced one-cent coins made of nickel to replace the old bulky copper pennies. Application to five-cent piece (originally one part nickel, three parts copper) is from 1883, American English; in earlier circulation there were silver half-dimes. To nickel-and-dime (someone) is from 1964 (nickels and dimes "very small amounts of money" is attested from 1893).
  • As in change : noun smaller currency in exchange for larger
  • As in plate : verb coat with metallic material
Example sentences :
  • So I bought this nickel one, an' carted t'other off into the attic. '
  • Extract from : « Tiverton Tales » by Alice Brown
  • Five cents, a nickel, a half-a-dime, the twentiethpotofadollah!
  • Extract from : « The Gentleman From Indiana » by Booth Tarkington
  • "Some greeny that wants a nickel's worth of beans, I suppose," said one.
  • Extract from : « The Widow O'Callaghan's Boys » by Gulielma Zollinger
  • The driver meanwhile searched his pockets in vain for a nickel.
  • Extract from : « Harper's Young People, October 26, 1880 » by Various
  • When he came back she slipped a nickel upon the arm of his chair.
  • Extract from : « The Wall Street Girl » by Frederick Orin Bartlett
  • Much iron, steel, copper, brass and nickel are used in our homes.
  • Extract from : « Where We Live » by Emilie Van Beil Jacobs
  • At that time, the presence of nickel was the "positive" test of meteoritic matter.
  • Extract from : « The Book of the Damned » by Charles Fort
  • For these reasons, nickel or gold plating is much to be preferred.
  • Extract from : « On Laboratory Arts » by Richard Threlfall
  • "Here is your money," answered Dick, and passed the nickel over.
  • Extract from : « The Rover Boys on Treasure Isle » by Edward Stratemeyer (AKA Arthur M. Winfield)
  • So I bought this nickel one, an' carted t' other off into the attic. '
  • Extract from : « Tiverton Tales » by Alice Brown

Synonyms for nickel

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019