nitty

American

[nit-ee] / ˈnɪt i /

adjective

nittier, nittiest

full of nits.

nitty ¹ British

/ ˈnɪtɪ /

adjective

infested with nits

"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

nitty ² British

/ ˈnɪtɪ /

adjective

informal foolish; stupid

"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

Etymology

Origin of nitty

First recorded in 1560–70; nit ¹ + -y ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

And not to the exclusion of bettering their lives by paying attention to the nitty and the gritty, like making housing and higher education more readily available and, yes, fixing potholes.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 8, 2026

Before we get into the nitty gritty, had you already been a fan of “Squid Game”? Did you watch the first season?

From Salon • Dec. 31, 2024

Nodding to part of the challenge ahead, she added, “I’m excited to meet people and learn more about the nitty gritty local issues.”

From Seattle Times • Jan. 21, 2024

They were just sort of in a, in a very nitty gritty way, trying to solve the problems that were put in front of them.

From Scientific American • Oct. 12, 2023

He has need o' a clean pow that ca's his neighbour nitty now.

From The Proverbs of Scotland by Hislop, Alexander

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023