Nice (adjective)

From Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia written in simple English for easy reading.

For Nice, the city in France, see Nice

The word nice means "pleasant", "pleasing". Something that is nice is something that you like. The opposite is "nasty" or "horrible".

  • Have a nice day!
  • It was very nice of you to come.
  • What a nice surprise!
  • This cake is very nice.

Teachers in schools often tell their students not to use the word "nice" when writing. This is because the word "nice" is used a lot. It is not a very strong or interesting word. When you speak you can say: "I had a nice time", but when writing it is more interesting to put: "I had a lovely time" or "I had a wonderful time".

Because the word "nice" is not a very strong word it can sometimes be used when people do not mean it. If you are invited to a meal and you say that the food is "nice", people may think you are just saying it to be polite. It would be better to say: "This food is delicious" or "tasty" or "lovely". You can also make "nice" stronger by saying "very nice".

Sometimes in British culture "nice" can mean "posh" or "upper class": "Nice people do not do things like that". Here "nice people" mean people from the upper social classes. It is often said with a posh accent, and usually as a joke.