nickel

[ nik-uhl ]
See synonyms for nickel on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Chemistry. a hard, silvery-white, ductile and malleable metallic element, allied to iron and cobalt, not readily oxidized: used chiefly in alloys, in electroplating, and as a catalyst in organic synthesis. Symbol: Ni; atomic weight: 58.71; atomic number: 28; specific gravity: 8.9 at 20°C.

  2. a cupronickel coin of the U.S., the 20th part of a dollar, equal to five cents.

  1. a nickel coin of Canada, the 20th part of a dollar, equal to five cents.

verb (used with object),nick·eled, nick·el·ing or (especially British) nick·elled, nick·el·ling.
  1. to cover or coat with nickel; nickel-plate.

adjective
  1. Slang. costing or worth five dollars: a nickel bag of heroin.

Origin of nickel

1
1745–55; <Swedish, abstracted from kopparnickel<German Kupfernickel niccolite, literally, copper demon (so called because though looking like copper it yielded none); Nickel demon, special use of short form of Nikolaus proper name. Cf. Old Nick, pumpernickel

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for nickel

nickel

/ (ˈnɪkəl) /


noun
  1. a malleable ductile silvery-white metallic element that is strong and corrosion-resistant, occurring principally in pentlandite and niccolite: used in alloys, esp in toughening steel, in electroplating, and as a catalyst in organic synthesis. Symbol: Ni; atomic no: 28; atomic wt: 58.6934; valency: 0, 1, 2, or 3; relative density: 8.902; melting pt: 1455°C; boiling pt: 2914°C

  2. a US and Canadian coin and monetary unit worth five cents

verb-els, -elling or -elled or US -els, -eling or -eled
  1. (tr) to plate with nickel

Origin of nickel

1
C18: shortened form of German Kupfernickel niccolite, literally: copper demon, so called by miners because it was mistakenly thought to contain copper

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

Scientific definitions for nickel

nickel

[ nĭkəl ]


Ni
  1. A silvery, hard, ductile metallic element that occurs in ores along with iron or magnesium. It resists oxidation and corrosion and is used to make alloys such as stainless steel. It is also used as a coating for other metals. Atomic number 28; atomic weight 58.69; melting point 1,453°C; boiling point 2,732°C; specific gravity 8.902; valence 0, 1, 2, 3. See Periodic Table.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with nickel

nickel

see not worth a dime (plugged nickel).

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.