neat

¹ American  

[neet] / nit /

adjective

neater, neatest

1. in a pleasingly orderly and clean condition.

   a neat room.

   Synonyms:

   smart, spruce

   Antonyms:

   sloppy

2. habitually orderly and clean in appearance or habits.

   a neat person.

3. of a simple, pleasing appearance, style, design, etc..

   a neat cottage.

4. cleverly effective in character or execution: a neat solution.

   a neat scheme;

   a neat solution.

   Synonyms:

   wonderful, well-planned

5. Slang. great; excellent; fine.

   What a neat car!

6. clever, dexterous, or apt.

   She gave a neat characterization of the old woman.

   Synonyms:

   adroit

   Antonyms:

   maladroit

7. (of liquid, especially liquor) straight.

   Synonyms:

   pure, unmixed

   Antonyms:

   mixed

8. Building Trades.

   1. (of cement) without sand or other aggregate.

   2. (of plaster) without any admixture except hair or fiber.

9. net.

   neat profits.

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adverb

1. Informal. neatly.

neat ² American  

[neet] / nit /

noun

plural

neat

1. an animal of the genus Bos; a bovine, as a cow or ox.

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neat ¹ British  

/ niːt /

adjective

1. clean, tidy, and orderly

2. liking or insisting on order and cleanliness; fastidious

3. smoothly or competently done; efficient

   a neat job

4. pat or slick

   his excuse was suspiciously neat

5. (of alcoholic drinks) without added water, lemonade, etc; undiluted

6. a less common word for net 2

   neat profits

7. slang good; pleasing; admirable

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neat ² British  

/ niːt /

noun

1. archaic a domestic bovine animal

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Other Word Forms

• neatly adverb
• neatness noun

Etymology

Origin of neat¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English net “spruce, trim, clean,” from Middle French, from Latin nitidus “shining, polished, handsome, spruce,” equivalent to nit(ēre) “to shine” + -idus adjective suffix; -id ⁴

Origin of neat²

First recorded before 900; Middle English net, nete, nette, Old English nēat, cognate with Old Norse naut, Middle Dutch noot; akin to Old English nēotan “to use, possess”

Example Sentences

WSJ Pro: What neat spy tech do you have your eye on as an investor?

From The Wall Street Journal

There is no neat dividing line where you can point to the algorithm on one side and the physical mechanism on the other.

From Science Daily

In the same way, a neat single photon line reduces the risk of data being intercepted or overheard.

From Science Daily

“The really neat thing about this analysis is that it says when that is.”

From The Wall Street Journal

That was the first real chance of the game and Conceicao was more clinical a minute before the break, the Portugal forward lashing home with his left foot after collecting Andrea Cambiaso's neat flick.

From Barron's

Related Words

• accurate
• elegant
• immaculate
• orderly
• precise
• sleek
• slick
• smart
• spotless
• tidy
• well-kept