nix

views updated May 23 2018

nix¹ / niks/ inf. • n. nothing: apart from that, nix.• interj. expressing denial or refusal: “I owe you some money.” “Nix, nix.”• v. [tr.] put an end to; cancel: he nixed the deal just before it was to be signed.nix² • n. (fem. nix·ie / ˈniksē/ ) (in Germanic mythology) a water sprite.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

nix

views updated Jun 11 2018

nix2 water-sprite. XIX. — G. nix, MHG. nickes, OHG. nihhus.
So nixie water-nymph. XIX. — G. nixe :- OHG. nicchessa, with assim. of ending to -IE.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

nix

views updated May 18 2018

nix1 (sl.) nothing. XVIII. — colloq. G. nix, for nichts, g. of niht nothing (cf. NOUGHT).

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

nix

views updated Jun 27 2018

nix a water sprite; the word comes (in the mid 19th century) from German, and is related to archaic English nicker. A nixie is a female water sprite.

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable ELIZABETH KNOWLES