nice-nellyism

or nice-Nel·ly·ism

[ nahys-nel-ee-iz-uh m ]

/ ˈnaɪsˈnɛl iˌɪz əm /

noun

excessive modesty; prudishness.

a euphemism: an evasive style of writing, full of circumlocutions and nice-nellyisms.

RELATED CONTENT

The Not-So-Nice Evolution Of The Word “Nice”Recently the phrase nice guy has been used to describe guys who are anything but nice by current standards. But, where did it come from?

10 Father Quotes That’ll Make You Emotional Read more in this article about some frequently asked questions and fun facts related to our definitions.

Nearby words

nice, nice guys finish last, nice nelly, nice-looking, nice-nelly, nice-nellyism, nicene, nicene council, nicene creed, niceno-constantinopolitan creed, nicetas

Origin of nice-nellyism

First recorded in 1935–40; nice nelly + -ism

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