Not Nice At All

Not Nice At All Not Nice At All Not Nice At All By Sharon My high school English teacher banned the use of the word nice. She said it was a lazy adjective. Although she was a bit harsh, there was some truth in what she said. It is said that nice originates from the Latin nescio meaning I dont know. So what Mrs C was getting at was that if you used the word nice, you probably didnt know what to say. Even after Roman times, nice just wasnt a good word to use. In the 13th century it meant foolish, so saying someone was nice was insulting rather than complimentary. Through the centuries nice had different meanings, including timid, extravagant, elegant, wanton, dainty, strange, thin, modest, shy and precise (this last meaning still survives in the phrase nice and early). By the 18th century the meaning had started to change to the more modern sense of agreeable or kind. That still didnt cut any ice with my English teacher, though, who remained opposed to using nice all through my school career. How many synonyms can you find for nice? Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Program vs. ProgrammeFor Sale vs. On SaleConversational Email