nicety

noun nice·ty \ ˈnī-sə-tē , -stē \

|Updated on: 8 Aug 2018

Examples: nicety in a Sentence

Definition of nicety

plural niceties

1 : the quality or state of being nice

2 : an elegant, delicate, or civilized feature

enjoy the niceties of life

3 : a fine point or distinction : subtlety

the niceties of table manners

4 : careful attention to details : delicate exactness : precision

5 : delicacy of taste or feeling : fastidiousness

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Examples of nicety in a Sentence

knows all the niceties of diplomatic protocol
a woman too fond of the niceties of urban living to even consider becoming a farmer's wife

Recent Examples of nicety from the Web

The picture this collection makes is one of a genius who is herself maddened by social niceties, and all the other tedious obstacles of the daily capitalist grind.

— brittany allen, Longreads, "Getting Tricked by Helen DeWitt," 9 July 2018
Don't believe the sweet, treacly greetings exchanged between Wind Gap residents for a second — these niceties mask the real dynamics at work.

— refinery29.com, "Meet The Cast & Characters Of Sharp Objects, HBO’s Darkest Show Yet," 5 July 2018
Among the property’s movie star-worthy niceties are two 75-foot long pools, which are connected by an over-water walkway and flanked by eight cabanas and an organic juice bar.

— jenna gottlieb, Vogue, "The Hottest Hotel Pools to Cool Down In This Summer," 21 June 2018
But such niceties never seem to last, particularly not in post-apocalyptic fiction.

— ben guarino, Anchorage Daily News, "The world’s most murderous mammal is probably not what you think it is," 30 Sep. 2016
Sure enough, before too long, suspected terrorists are being chased down in various countries, hooded and interrogated without regard for the niceties of human rights.

— taylor sheridan, New York Times, "Review: ‘Sicario: Day of the Soldado’ Blends War Movie and Western," 28 June 2018
Then, on Tuesday, summit stagecraft signaled a tilt toward full-on diplomatic niceties, portraying the septuagenarian president and the 30-something dictator as equals in the glare of the global limelight.

— chun han wong, WSJ, "Nuclear Niceties: Trump and Kim Share Smiles, for a Change," 12 June 2018
Trump made promoting American interests in international trade his primary goal for the G7 summit, often to the detriment of diplomatic niceties.

— sarah hallam, CNN, "Angela Merkel calls US retraction of support 'sobering and somewhat depressing'," 11 June 2018
Two administration officials acknowledged that Trump simply does not see allies and adversaries in the traditional way, nor any reason to couch his views in diplomatic niceties.

— karen deyoung, Anchorage Daily News, "In Trump, some see the end of the world order," 8 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'nicety.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.