What does "nicker" mean?
Pound sterling.
Nicker
/ˈnɪkə(ɹ)/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Pound sterling.
- Grammar: nicker is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: bark, bawl, bay, bellow.
- Usage evidence: Seems? Well, this seems to be a waste of my time. That is 900 nicker in any shop you're lucky enough to find one in. And you're complaining about 200? What school of finance did you study?
How to use "nicker"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "nicker" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "nicker" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "nicker" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "nicker" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "nicker" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "bark" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "nicker", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Pound sterling. British, slang
"This coat cost me 50 nicker."
- 2 A soft neighing sound characteristic of a horse.
- 3 One of the night brawlers of London formerly noted for breaking windows with halfpence. obsolete, slang
"1713-1714, John Arbuthnot, Memoirs of Martin Scriblerus your modern musicians want art to defend their windows from common nickers"
- 4 A type of mythological sea creature or sea monster; also, a water sprite; a nix or nixie; a mermaid or merman.
"And in another tale, told at Kemnitz of the Nicker, as he is there called, when he asks the midwife how much he owes her, she answers that she will take no more from him than from other people."
- 5 nigger. derogatory, ethnic, euphemistic, offensive, slur, vulgar
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 the characteristic sounds made by a horse wordnet
- 7 A snigger or suppressed laugh.
- 8 The cutting lip which projects downward at the edge of a boring bit and cuts a circular groove in the wood to limit the size of the hole that is bored.
- 9 Hippopotamus.
- 10 Someone who nicks (steals) something, a thief. informal
"He […] was far more interested in the fact that I was a car thief and an expert driver than that I was a bandit. […] Car nicker, are you?"
Verb
- 1 To make a soft neighing sound characteristic of a horse.
"Behind him, old Akthoob was grumbling loudly, saying something about the midday meal, and Haral, the black Feridoon pony, snuffing in the old, familiar scent of the green meadows of the Chaya's banks, the warm sweet smells of home, was nickering eagerly."
- 2 To snatch or steal. UK, informal
- 3 make a characteristic sound, of a horse wordnet
- 4 To produce a snigger or suppressed laugh.
Example
"Seems? Well, this seems to be a waste of my time. That is 900 nicker in any shop you're lucky enough to find one in. And you're complaining about 200? What school of finance did you study?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "nicker"?
Common synonyms include: bark, bawl, bay, bellow, blare, blat.
How do you use "nicker" in a sentence?
Seems? Well, this seems to be a waste of my time. That is 900 nicker in any shop you're lucky enough to find one in. And you're complaining about 200? What school of finance did you study?
How do you pronounce "nicker"?
Pronounced /ˈnɪkə(ɹ)/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Imitative; from 1774.
Etymology 2
From nick + -er.
Etymology 3
From Middle English niker, from Old English nicor, from Proto-Germanic *nikwis. Cognate with German Nix (“water demon”) and German Nixe (“female water-spirit”); also related to Old Norse nykr (“water demon”) (see there for further descendants). Doublet of nix.
Etymology 4
Mispronunciation of nigger.