nice

adjective

ˈnīs How to pronounce nice (audio)
Definition of nicenext
1
as in pleasant
giving pleasure or contentment to the mind or senses a cool glass of lemonade sure would be nice

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in polite
following the established traditions of refined society and good taste had nice manners

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in careful
hard to please she's far too nice about her clothes for me to even consider giving her clothing for her birthday

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in gracious
having an easygoing and pleasing manner especially in social situations such a nice person to have as a party guest

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in subtle
made or done with extreme care and accuracy the noticeably nice folding of the dinner napkins told us that we were in the home of a domestic diva

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in honorable
conforming to a high standard of morality or virtue in those days nice people would not have been caught dead in a gambling casino

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7
as in formal
marked by or showing careful attention to set forms and details a gentleman's club with a nice code of honor that no one can breach and still remain a member

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word nice different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of nice are accurate, correct, exact, precise, and right. While all these words mean "conforming to fact, standard, or truth," nice stresses great precision and delicacy of adjustment or discrimination.

makes nice distinctions

When can accurate be used instead of nice?

The words accurate and nice can be used in similar contexts, but accurate implies fidelity to fact or truth attained by exercise of care.

an accurate description

When is it sensible to use correct instead of nice?

While the synonyms correct and nice are close in meaning, correct usually implies freedom from fault or error.

correct answers
socially correct dress

Where would exact be a reasonable alternative to nice?

While in some cases nearly identical to nice, exact stresses a very strict agreement with fact, standard, or truth.

exact measurements

How do precise and exact relate to one another, in the sense of nice?

Precise adds to exact an emphasis on sharpness of definition or delimitation.

precise calibration

How are the words right and correct related as synonyms of nice?

Right is close to correct but has a stronger positive emphasis on conformity to fact or truth rather than mere absence of error or fault.

the right thing to do

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of nice Both Briningstool and Watson had a nice Saturday, but fitting a fourth tight end among tough back-end roster decisions has proven difficult, especially considering that both could make it through waivers to the practice squad. — Pete Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 17 Aug. 2026 Waiting on Vulcan and New Glenn The Ariane 6 rocket made its debut flight in July 2024 and has had a nice track record. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 17 Aug. 2026 Additionally, there's a breakfast bar for two and a nice high ceiling helps make the space look airy. — New Atlas, 16 Aug. 2026 Dave Winfield made a nice play on the ball and fired a strong throw home. — Michael Kupper, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for nice
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nice
  1. pleasant
  2. polite
  3. careful
  4. gracious
  5. subtle
  6. honorable
  7. formal
  8. delightful
Adjective
  • With time for a quick lunch, Zouaghi enjoyed a pleasant farm-to-table meal at Five March before continuing to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, one of Glasgow’s premier cultural institutions.
    — Paul Jebara, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Join Swamp Fox Tours for a pleasant hour-long history and architecture lesson aboard the blue-and-white tram.
    — Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of pleasant
Adjective
  • In Berkeley, where California clay culture yanked ceramics out of the category of polite craft and into something huge, physical, ugly, and beautiful, Heilmann learned to weld.
    — Jerry Saltz, Vulture, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Bukele’s manner is polite but imperious, slow to bestow approval.
    — Daniel Castro, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of polite
Adjective
  • Without careful planning to reduce the constellations’ brightness, the team found that, in the most extreme case, the satellites could outnumber visible stars by a factor of 100.
    — Arielle Frommer, Scientific American, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Maneuvering in tight spaces requires careful judgment of each individual case — and not just about which body part is least likely to cause offense when brought into close proximity to a fellow diner.
    — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of careful
Adjective
  • If this doesn’t seem like a gracious revelation, there’s a point to the deep horror that Manchevski draws out here.
    — Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026
  • When the two first meet in a dressing room during the pilot, Jaymes is gracious while Barnes is condescending.
    — Maira Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of gracious
Adjective
  • Clinicians found real value in cases involving subtle fractures in the knees, feet and other extremities, where conventional X-ray findings were inconclusive or missed the fracture altogether.
    — Erez Meltzer, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Then there are the subtle vanilla notes like those found in Orb Oils’s Lenny fragrance, matcha in Le Labo’s, or, say, Flamingo Estate’s Prinsesstårta roll-on captures notes of marzipan like a slice of Sant Ambroeus Princess cake.
    — Arden Fanning Andrews, Vogue, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of subtle
Adjective
  • That work is, in my opinion, as honorable as being a midwife or the kind of doula who helps deliver babies.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Aug. 2026
  • My time in the ministry was filled with hundreds of friendships of men and women of all faiths who were faith-filled and honorable.
    — Chick Pritchard, Hartford Courant, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of honorable
Adjective
  • He would be sentenced to four years of formal probation, according to the clerk’s office.
    — Julianna Bragg, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2026
  • In this case, there was no formal RFP, or request for proposal, process.
    — Brian Maass, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of formal
Adjective
  • Nutty and sweet coconut shrimp is a delightful way to enjoy shellfish.
    — Kate Williams, AJC.com, 17 Aug. 2026
  • The 20-year-old’s delightful run to set up Switzerland’s opening goal against Algeria at the World Cup, on their way to a last-32 win, was a highlights-reel moment, as was his brace against Bosnia & Herzegovina.
    — Cerys Jones, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of delightful

Phrases Containing nice

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nibs
nice
nicely
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Cite this Entry

“Nice.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nice. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on nice

Nglish: Translation of nice for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about nice

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