a small notch, groove, chip, or the like, cut into or existing in something.
a hollow place produced in an edge or surface, as of a dish, by breaking, chipping, or the like.
I didn't notice those tiny nicks in the vase when I bought it.
a small dent or wound.
a small groove on one side of the shank of a printing type, serving as a guide in setting or to distinguish different types.
Biochemistry. a break in one strand of a double-stranded DNA or RNA molecule.
British Slang. prison.
to cut into or through.
I nicked my chin while shaving.
to hit or injure slightly.
to make a nick or nicks in (something); notch, groove, or chip.
to record by means of a notch or notches.
to incise certain tendons at the root of (a horse's tail) to give it a higher carrying position; make an incision under the tail of (a horse).
to hit, guess, catch, etc., exactly.
Slang. to trick, cheat, or defraud.
How much did they nick you for that suit?
British Slang.
to arrest (a criminal or suspect).
to capture; nab.
to steal.
Someone nicked her pocketbook on the bus.
a small notch or indentation on an edge or surface
a groove on the shank of a printing type, used to orientate type and often to distinguish the fount
a slang word for prison police station
informal in good condition
at the last possible moment; at the critical moment
(tr) to chip or cut
slang (tr)
to steal
to take into legal custody; arrest
informal to move or depart rapidly
to divide and reset (certain of the tail muscles of a horse) to give the tail a high carriage
(tr) to guess, catch, etc, exactly
(intr) (of breeding stock) to mate satisfactorily
slang to defraud someone to the extent of
1475–85; obscurely akin to Old English gehnycned wrinkled, Old Norse hnykla to wrinkle
A nick is a tiny cut or scratch. Your neighbor might be so proud and protective of his brand new car that even a nick in its paint would be deeply upsetting to him. To make a nick is also to nick: you might accidentally nick your dog when you're cutting tangles and mats out of her fur, or nick yourself when you're gathering up pieces of a broken glass in the sink. Informally, you also nick someone when you cheat them out of some cash or nick something when you steal it. If help arrives "in the nick of time," it comes at the very last possible second.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Fire were on course for a comfortable victory after reaching 109-3 in their chase of 127, with opener Georgia Voll in good nick and unbeaten on a half-century.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
This should be a really good match and I think Paraguay will nick the win they need late on.
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026
The country stored up 1.26 billion barrels of oil in the nick of time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026
It built up those reserves just in the nick of time.
From Barron's ● Mar. 4, 2026
“But I did manage to call your parents Uncle and Auntie in the nick of time.”
From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon
Nick Estes, 35, an American tourist visiting the Asakusa area of Tokyo with his family, said Thursday the weather was "extremely hot".
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
Var CEO Nick Walker said the $1.3 billion deal would create Europe’s largest independent oil-and-gas producer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Full reporting for the quarter should confirm this trend continues, and that’s bullish for stocks, says Nick Raich, who tracks earnings and earnings revisions closely at his research service the Earnings Scout.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
They sent two minor leaguers — right-hander Nick Frasso, who has a 4.74 ERA in triple A, and outfielder Landyn Vidourek, a 2025 third-round pick — to the Rockies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Pete Redmarley and Gilbert Swinyard and Nick Yew and Ross Wilcox and that lot were having a puddle fight but just as I got there, the noddy-eyed school bus pulled up.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
Scott Boland bowled 74 deliveries to Root in the remaining three Tests of that series, conceded 39 runs and dismissed Root four times by consistently probing at that fuller length and finding nicks.
From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2025
Same goes for noting any damage, like nicks or scratches.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 8, 2025
“Yes, it’ll get nicks, but it’ll still be beautiful.”
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 6, 2023
“You always get bumps and bruises and nicks and don’t feel great. You just keep going.”
From Washington Times ● Oct. 26, 2022
Francie noticed that some already had their summer haircut: hair cropped so short that there were nicks in the scalp where the clippers had bitten too deeply.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
Both openers were caught behind as Rosemary Mair and Bree Illing found plenty of movement through the air, before former skipper Heather Knight dropped anchor with 28 until she also nicked to the keeper.
From BBC ● May 16, 2026
Imagine it like this: It is late in the evening of April 15, 1865, and Abraham Lincoln has survived an assassination attempt, the bullet aimed by John Wilkes Booth having merely nicked his now-bandaged scalp.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
Kelly: What, you just nicked another kid's football?!
From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2026
To test the idea further, the researchers created "nicked" DNA, strands that were interrupted at specific points.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 9, 2026
First couple of times, he had to sprint to catch up after cutting the ivy, and once he nicked his finger.
From "The Maze Runner" by James Dashner
And, of course, we’ve been in a reciprocal comedy arrangement with Britain — or at least we have been nicking their ideas for shows — for years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2026
Harry Wilson has been excellent for them this season, but while I don't see them losing this, I don't see them nicking it either.
From BBC ● Dec. 11, 2025
Jamie Smith, another Ashes player in poor form, was almost bowled before nicking a cut behind next ball in the second over for five, before opening partner Duckett hacked a pull to mid-on.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2025
Brook played and missed, attempted two ramp shots after which he fell over both times, before nicking behind off Bosch's medium pace.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2025
He shaved kind of awkward, nicking his face in several places.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
