neat

[neet]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR neat ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, neat·er, neat·est.

in a pleasingly orderly and clean condition: a neat room.

habitually orderly and clean in appearance or habits: a neat person.

of a simple, pleasing appearance, style, design, etc.: a neat cottage.

cleverly effective in character or execution: a neat scheme; a neat solution.

Slang. great; wonderful; fine: What a neat car!

clever, dexterous, or apt: She gave a neat characterization of the old woman.

straight(def 33).

Building Trades.

(of cement) without sand or other aggregate.
(of plaster) without any admixture except hair or fiber.

net: neat profits.

adverb

Informal. neatly.

Origin of neat

1300–50; Middle English net spruce, trim, clean < Middle French < Latin nitidus shining, polished, handsome, spruce, equivalent to nit(ēre) to shine + -idus -id⁴

Related formsneat·ly, adverbneat·ness, noun

Synonyms for neat

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR neat ON THESAURUS.COM

1. spruce, smart. 4. finished, well-planned. 6. adroit. 7. unmixed, pure.

Antonyms for neat

1. sloppy. 6. maladroit. 7. mixed.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for neatness

cleanliness, tidiness, cleanness, orderliness, organization, correctness, order, clearness

Examples from the Web for neatness

Contemporary Examples of neatness

However…the failure to send a distress call still undermines the neatness of this picture.
How Flight 370 Could Have Become a Zombie
Clive Irving
March 19, 2014

Historical Examples of neatness

Cody's planes are noted for their neatness, rigidity and smoothness.
Flying Machines
W.J. Jackman and Thos. H. Russell
It is the only tavern in the village, and for neatness and comfort can not easily be surpassed.
The Bay State Monthly, Vol. 1, Issue 1.
Various
Let neatness, and elegance, and beauty exhibit their proudest charms.
Imogen
William Godwin
Neatness was at all times my pride; but now plainness was the conformity to necessity.
Beaux and Belles of England
Mary Robinson
It lacks the neatness, the athletic movement of Paine's English.
Shelley, Godwin and Their Circle
H. N. Brailsford

British Dictionary definitions for neatness

neat

adjective

clean, tidy, and orderly

liking or insisting on order and cleanliness; fastidious

smoothly or competently done; efficienta neat job

pat or slickhis excuse was suspiciously neat

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

a less common word for net 2 neat profits

slang, mainly US and Canadian good; pleasing; admirable

Derived Formsneatly, 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

neat

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

Word Origin and History for neatness

neat

adj.

1540s, "clean, free from dirt," from Anglo-French neit, Middle French net "clear, pure" (12c.), from Latin nitidus "well-favored, elegant, trim," literally "gleaming," from nitere "to shine," from PIE root *nei- "to shine" (cf. Middle Irish niam "gleam, splendor," niamda "shining;" Old Irish noib "holy," niab "strength;" Welsh nwyfiant "gleam, splendor").

Meaning "inclined to be tidy" is from 1570s. Of liquor, "straight," c.1800, from meaning "unadulterated" (of wine), which is first attested 1570s. Informal sense of "very good" first recorded 1934 in American English; variant neato is teenager slang, first recorded 1968. Related: Neatly; neatness.

neat

"ox, bullock, cow," Old English neat "ox, beast, animal," from Proto-Germanic *nautam "thing of value, possession" (cf. Old Frisian nat, Middle Dutch noot, Old High German noz, Old Norse naut), from PIE root *neud- "to make use of, enjoy."