nixie

1
[ nik-see ]
See synonyms for nixie on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a letter or parcel that is undeliverable by the post office because of a faulty or illegible address.

Origin of nixie

1
First recorded in 1880–85; nix1 + -ie

Words Nearby nixie

Other definitions for nixie (2 of 2)

nixie2
[ nik-see ]

nounGerman Folklore.
  1. a female water spirit.

Origin of nixie

2
1810–20; <German Nixe (Middle High German nickese,Old High German nicchessa;see nix2), perhaps construed at time of borrowing as nix2 + -ie

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use nixie in a sentence

  • This is the first of the popular nixie Bunny Books which have been read wherever there are children.

    Bow-Wow and Mew-Mew | Georgiana M. Craik
  • When my poor, noble, unselfish boy is sacrificing himself—for you don't suppose he can have any affection for a Water-nixie?

    In Brief Authority | F. Anstey
  • He achieved the sale more readily because of the newspaper controversy aroused by the nixie.

    The Nest Builder | Beatrice Forbes-Robertson Hale
  • Barbara stooped suddenly to pat nixie, hiding her wounded face in his glossy curls.

    The Wyndam Girls | Marion Ames Taggart
  • "Let me help you get the plants in, and I'll settle with the boy, because it's all nixie's fault," said the young doctor.

    The Wyndam Girls | Marion Ames Taggart

British Dictionary definitions for nixie

nixie

/ (ˈnɪksɪ) /


noun
  1. German myth a female water sprite, usually unfriendly to humans

Origin of nixie

1
C19: see nix

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012