nyce

Middle English

FWOTD – 11 August 2021

Alternative forms

• nys, nice, nyse, nise, nece

Etymology

From Old French nice, from Latin nescius.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈniːs(ə)/

Adjective

nyce

1. foolish, simple, ignorant, naive
2. scared, weak, lazy
3. fussy, careful, particular, scrupulous [from 14th c.]
4. wanton, sinful, morally reprehensible [from 14th c.]
5. cunning, keen, sharp [from 15th c.]
6. extravagant, over-the-top [from 15th c.]
7. (rare) fragile, delicate [from 15th c.]
8. (rare) strange, odd, bizarre [from 15th c.]
   • a. 1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, “Book II”, in Troilus and Criseyde, lines 22–28:

     Ȝe knowe ek that in fourme of ſpeche is chaunge / With-inne a thousand ȝeer, and wordes tho /That hadden pris now wonder nyce and ſtraunge /Us thenketh hem, and ȝet thei ſpake hem so / And ſpedde as wel in loue as men now do / Ek forto wynnen loue in ſondry ages / In ſondry londes, ſondry ben vſages […]

     You also know that the form of language is in flux; / within a thousand years, words / that had currency; really weird and bizarre / they seem to us now, but they still spoke them / and accomplished as much in love as men do now. / As for winning love across ages and / across nations, there are lots of usages […]

Derived terms

• nycely

Descendants

• English: nice
• Scots: nice
• ⇒ Yola: nicest

References

• “nīce, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-04.

Noun

nyce (plural nyces)

1. fool, simpleton
2. morally reprehensible person

References

• “nīce, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-04.

Adverb

nyce

1. foolishly, naively

References

• “nīce, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-04.