nice-nelly 1 of 2

adjective

ˈnīs-ˈne-lē How to pronounce nice-nelly (audio)
Definition of nice-nellynext
as in Victorian
given to or marked by very conservative standards regarding personal behavior or morals the novel's wildly off base portrayal of 18th-century aristocrats as nice-nelly exemplars of decorum

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

nice nelly

2 of 2

noun

as in puritan
a person who is greatly concerned with seemly behavior and morality especially regarding sexual matters some nice nelly bowdlerized this collection of wartime ditties that were lustily sung by the men around the campfire

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for nice-nelly
  1. Victorian
  2. puritan
  3. puritanical
Adjective
  • Real estate here is no less impressive, ranging from Victorian mansions and traditional farmhouses to sleek, contemporary residences.
    Emma Reynolds, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024
  • Hart thinks Goodison is irreplaceable, a venue where the terraces hang over the pitch and some of the timberwork dates back to the Victorian era.
    Simon Hughes, The Athletic, 20 Dec. 2024
Definition of Victorian
Noun
  • Centuries after being burned at the stake, a witch named Jennifer (Veronica Lake) magically reappears and tries to torment the descendant of the puritan who led the charge against her — only to fall in love with him.
    Clark Collis, EW.com, 18 Oct. 2024
  • Naysayers and scene puritans are too late to tear down Turnstile; the Baltimore band heard it all before its third album even dropped anyway.
    Pitchfork, Pitchfork, 1 Oct. 2024
Definition of puritan
Adjective
  • Gein was born in 1906 to an alcoholic father and an allegedly fanatically puritanical mother, according to the MGM+ docuseries Psycho: The Lost Tapes of Ed Gein.
    Jordana Comiter, People.com, 23 Nov. 2024
  • Salman seems more inclined than his predecessor to appease the ultraconservative and puritanical Wahhabi clerical establishment and other conservative Islamist forces in the country.
    Richard Sokolsky, Foreign Affairs, 6 Jan. 2016
Definition of puritanical
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near nice-nelly

nice nelly

nice-nelly

nice-nellyism

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Cite this Entry

“Nice-nelly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nice-nelly. Accessed 30 Dec. 2024.

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