niftier; niftiest
informal
: very good: such as
a
: very attractive or appealing
nifty clothes
Jon Gnagy was an artist—you could tell this by the nifty goatee he wore …—
Andy Meisler
Andy Meisler
b
: very pleasant or enjoyable
a nifty performance
… this barrier isle off North Carolina's southernmost coast still provides a nifty getaway.—Spike Gillespie
Spike GillespieThe Smithereens consistently present nifty, driving songs, quite involved by pop standards.—David Hiltbrand
David Hiltbrand
c
: very interesting or clever : ingenious
a nifty device
The museum's gift shop is well-stocked, complete with a nifty machine that, for $1, will crush a fresh penny into a copper medal bearing the likeness of T. Rex.—Carl Wayne Arrington
Carl Wayne ArringtonSome investors are catching on to a nifty tax-saving trick allowable by Roth IRA rules.—Karen Hube
Karen Hube
d
: well-executed
A fan leaned out of the stands and made a nifty grab of the ricochet, and received a nice round of applause.—George Vecsay
George Vecsay
niftily
adverb
Harrison is an upwardly mobile … young man with a wife, son and a niftily restored house in San Francisco.
—John J. O'Connor
John J. O'Connor
plural nifties
: something that is nifty
especially
: a clever or neatly turned phrase or joke
Examples of nifty in a Sentence
Adjective
a nifty pair of shoes
This nifty little machine can do just about anything.
Noun
though ostensibly a drama, the play is filled with zingy little nifties that lighten the mood
that joke was a nifty
Recent Examples on the Web
Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 20 Oct. 2025
But Stafford has been nifty within the pocket and mobile enough on rollouts, absent glaring breakdowns up front.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Oct. 2025
Grebenkin made a nifty play in pushing it around defenseman Dylan DeMelo to an attacking Luchanko, who suddenly found himself in a two-on-one situation.
—Kevin Kurz, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
Blue Moon, the nifty new feature from director Richard Linklater, opts instead to cover one night in the life of its subject, the lyricist Lorenz Hart.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nifty
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Adjective
With Zacha planted in the slot, Charlie McAvoy sent a pass down low to him and Zacha made a nifty touch pass to Pastrnak at the side of the net.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 20 Oct. 2025
But Stafford has been nifty within the pocket and mobile enough on rollouts, absent glaring breakdowns up front.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Oct. 2025
Grebenkin made a nifty play in pushing it around defenseman Dylan DeMelo to an attacking Luchanko, who suddenly found himself in a two-on-one situation.
—Kevin Kurz, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
Blue Moon, the nifty new feature from director Richard Linklater, opts instead to cover one night in the life of its subject, the lyricist Lorenz Hart.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nifty
Cite this Entry
“Nifty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nifty. Accessed 26 Oct. 2025.
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