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neat

1
[ neet ]
/ nit /
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See synonyms for: neat / neater / neatest / neatly on Thesaurus.com

adjective, neat·er, neat·est.
adverb
Informal. neatly.
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Origin of neat

1
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; see -id4

OTHER WORDS FROM neat

neatly, adverbneatness, noun

Other definitions for neat (2 of 2)

neat2
[ neet ]
/ nit /

noun, plural neat.
an animal of the genus Bos; a bovine, as a cow or ox.

Origin of neat

2
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”
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use neat in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for neat (1 of 2)

neat1
/ (niːt) /

adjective

Derived forms of neat

neatly, adverbneatness, noun

Word Origin for neat

C16: from Old French net, from Latin nitidus clean, shining, from nitēre to shine; related to Middle Irish niam beauty, brightness, Old Persian naiba- beautiful

British Dictionary definitions for neat (2 of 2)

neat2
/ (niːt) /

noun plural neat
archaic, or dialect a domestic bovine animal

Word Origin for neat

Old English neat
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
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