nixie

¹ American  

[nik-see] / ˈnɪk si /

noun

1. a letter or parcel that is undeliverable by the post office because of a faulty or illegible address.

---

nixie ² American  

[nik-see] / ˈnɪk si /

noun

German Folklore.

1. a female water spirit.

---

nixie British  

/ ˈnɪksɪ /

noun

1. German myth a female water sprite, usually unfriendly to humans

---

Etymology

Origin of nixie¹

First recorded in 1880–85; nix ¹ + -ie

Origin of nixie²

1810–20; < German Nixe ( Middle High German nickese, Old High German nicchessa; nix ² ), perhaps construed at time of borrowing as nix ² + -ie

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

nixie

I think of the river and how, when one nixie detached from the others, Cardan waited until it paused and then left so we could get out of the water.

From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black

The male is called nix, the female nixie, the generic term for both being nicker, from a root which perhaps means ‘to wash.’

From Hero Tales and Legends of the Rhine by Lewis Spence

And all for a pair of white arms and two nixie eyes?

From The Children of the World by Paul Heyse

Thus the mysterious nixie swam up and down the lake ten or twelve times, in the profoundest silence.

From The Children of the World by Paul Heyse

They dwell with Odin and the nixie in the lake.

From A Captive of the Roman Eagles by Felix Dahn

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• gnome
• gremlin

---