nickel

nick·el | \ ˈni-kəl

How to pronounce nickel (audio)

\

variants: or less commonly nickle

Definition of nickel

1 : a silver-white hard malleable ductile metallic element capable of a high polish and resistant to corrosion that is used chiefly in alloys and as a catalyst — see Chemical Elements Table

2a(1) : the U.S. 5-cent piece regularly containing 25 percent nickel and 75 percent copper

(2) : the Canadian 5-cent piece

b : five cents

3 slang : a packet containing five dollars worth of an illicit drug (such as marijuana)

— called also nickel bag

4 : a pass defense in football that employs five defensive backs

Examples of nickel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The slot, and particularly Bears nickel corner Buster Skrine, was a consistent Vikings target when Cousins needed yardage most. — Andrew Krammer, Star Tribune, "Film review: Kirk Cousins, Vikings step out of mold to inch past Bears defense," 18 Nov. 2020 Indianapolis is monitoring Moore’s rib injury to see whether the Colts’ starting nickel can play Sunday against Aaron Rodgers. — Joel A. Erickson, The Indianapolis Star, "Colts getting more than their money's worth out of free agent find T.J. Carrie," 17 Nov. 2020 Darryl Roberts, the Lions’ primary nickel corner in Coleman’s absence, has four penalties, tied with Oruwariye for most on the team. — Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, "Detroit Lions midseason grades: Assigning all the blame for 3-5 start," 14 Nov. 2020 Kevin Johnson has met expectations as the nickel corner. — cleveland, "The 5-3 Browns at midseason: A position-by-position analysis," 14 Nov. 2020 Oregon has a counter in both its 1-4-6 dime and 2-4-5 nickel personnel groups. — oregonlive, "Oregon Ducks vs. Washington State Cougars: Preview, odds, time, TV channel, how to watch live stream online," 14 Nov. 2020 Nik Needham has handled the nickel role for the majority of the season, contributing 34 tackles and one pass deflection. — Omar Kelly, sun-sentinel.com, "Kelly: What could prevent these Dolphins from reaching the postseason? | Commentary," 13 Nov. 2020 The business allowed customers to access entertainment — music, speeches and, eventually, brief kinetoscope movies — for a nickel a spin. — Randall Roberts, Los Angeles Times, "L.A.’s evolution as a music powerhouse may have started earlier than we think," 12 Nov. 2020 Indianapolis had four defensive linemen on the line of scrimmage, two linebackers and a nickel corner five yards behind the defensive linemen and the other four defensive backs dropped back in coverage. — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, "Film analysis: Breaking down Joe Burrow's five most interesting moments from Week 6," 20 Oct. 2020

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

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Learn More about nickel

Dictionary Entries near nickel

nickel-and-dime

Statistics for nickel

Last Updated

22 Nov 2020

Cite this Entry

“Nickel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nickel. Accessed 28 Nov. 2020.

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More Definitions for nickel

nickel

noun

English Language Learners Definition of nickel

: a hard silver-white metal

: a U.S. or Canadian coin that is worth five cents

See the full definition for nickel in the English Language Learners Dictionary

nickel

nick·el | \ ˈni-kəl

\

Kids Definition of nickel

1 : a hard silvery white metallic chemical element that can be highly polished, resists weathering, and is used in alloys

2 : a United States coin worth five cents

nickel

nick·el | \ ˈnik-əl

\

Medical Definition of nickel

: a silver-white hard malleable ductile metallic element capable of a high polish and resistant to corrosion that is used chiefly in alloys and as a catalyst —symbol Ni — see Chemical Elements Table

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