英语词源字典 - 在线词源网站

nihil (n.)[nihil 词源字典]: Latin, literally "nothing" (see nil). Phrase nihil obstat "nothing stands in the way" printed on first pages of a Catholic work indicates its official approval.[nihil etymology, nihil origin, 英语词源]
nihilism (n.): 1817, "the doctrine of negation" (in reference to religion or morals), from German Nihilismus, from Latin nihil "nothing at all" (see nil), coined by German philosopher Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi (1743-1819). In philosophy, an extreme form of skepticism (1836). The political sense was first used by German journalist Joseph von Görres (1776-1848). Turgenev used the Russian form of the word (nigilizm) in "Fathers and Children" (1862) and claimed to have invented it. With a capital N-, it refers to the Russian revolutionary anarchism of the period 1860-1917, supposedly so called because "nothing" that then existed found favor in their eyes.
nihilist (n.): 1836 in the religious or philosophical sense, from French nihiliste, from Latin nihil (see nihilism). In the Russian political sense, it is recorded from 1871. Related: Nihilistic.
nihility (n.): 1670s, from Medieval Latin nihilitas, from nihil "nothing at all" (see nil).
Nike: Greek goddess of victory (identified by the Romans with their Victoria), literally "victory," probably connected with neikos "quarrel, strife," neikein "to quarrel with." As a type of U.S. defensive surface-to-air missiles, attested from 1952.
nil (n.): "nothing," 1833, from Latin nil, contraction of nihil, nihilum "nothing, not at all; in vain," from ne- "not" (see un-) + hilum "small thing, trifle," of unknown origin.
Nile: one of the world's oldest surviving place names, from a Semitic root nahal "river." Unnamed in Old Testament, it is always merely "the river" (Hebrew yeor).
nill (v.): Old English nylle, nelle "to be unwilling," from ne "no" (see no) + will (v.). Often paired with will; the construction in nill he, will he, once common, attested from c. 1300, surviving principally in willy-nilly, which, however, reverses the usual Middle English word order. Latin expressed a similar idea in nolens volens.
Nilo-: used as a comb. form of Nile.
nim (v.): "to take, to steal" (archaic), Old English niman "to take, accept, receive, grasp, catch" (cognates: Old Frisian nima, Middle Dutch nemen, German nehmen, Gothic niman; see nimble). The native word, replaced by Scandinavian-derived take (v.) and out of use from c. 1500 except in slang sense of "to steal," which endured into 19c.
nimble (adj.): "agile, light-footed," c. 1300, nemel, from Old English næmel "quick to grasp" (attested but once), related to niman "to take," from Proto-Germanic *neman (cognates: Old Saxon, Old Dutch, Gothic niman, Old Norse nema, Old Frisian nima, German nehmen "to take"), from PIE root *nem- "to divide, distribute, allot," also "to take" (cognates: Greek nemein "to deal out," nemesis "just indignation," Latin numerus "number," Lithuanian nuoma "rent, interest," Middle Irish nos "custom, usage"). With excrescent -b- from c. 1500 (compare limb (n.1)). Related: Nimbleness. In 17c., English had nimblechaps "talkative fellow."
nimbly (adv.): mid-14c., from nimble + -ly (adv.).
nimbostratus (n.): 1932 (earlier use from late 19c. refers to different cloud types), from Modern Latin nimbus (see nimbus) + connecting element -o- + stratus (see stratus).
nimbus (n.): 1610s, "bright cloud surrounding a god," from Latin nimbus "cloud," perhaps related to nebula "cloud, mist" (see nebula). Meaning "halo" is first recorded c. 1730. Meteorological sense of "a rain cloud" is from 1803.
nimby: acronym for not in my back yard, 1980, American English, supposedly coined by Walter Rodgers of the American Nuclear Society.
nimiety (n.): "excess, redundancy," from Latin nimietas "excessiveness," from nimius "beyond measure, excessive," from nimis (adv.) "too much, beyond measure, excessively."
Nimrod: "great hunter," 1712, a reference to the biblical son of Cush, referred to (Gen. x:8-9) as "a mighty hunter before the Lord." It came to mean "geek, klutz" by 1983 in teenager slang, for unknown reasons. (Amateur theories include its occasional use in "Bugs Bunny" cartoon episodes featuring rabbit-hunting Elmer Fudd as a foil; its possible ironic use, among hunters, for a clumsy member of their fraternity; or a stereotype of deer hunters by the non-hunting population in the U.S.)
Nimzo-Indian (adj.): type of defensive opening in chess, 1935, in reference to Aron Nimzowitsch (1886-1935), Latvian-born Jewish chess genius who popularized it, a variation of the Indian defense (late 19c.) attributed to Indian chess player Moheschunder Bannerjee.
Nina: fem. proper name; in a Russian context it is a shortening of Annina, diminutive of Greek Anna. In a Spanish context, Niña "child, infant," a nursery word.
nincompoop (n.): 1670s, nicompoop. Despite similarity [noted by Johnson] to Latin legal phrase non compos mentis "insane, mentally incompetent" (c. 1600), the connection is denied by etymologists because the earliest forms lack the second -n-. Weekley thinks first element may be a proper name, and cites Nicodemus, which he says was used in French for "a fool," or Nicholas. Klein says probably an invented word.