Nickel

Pronunciation

• enPR: nÄ­k'É™l, IPA: /ˈnɪk.É™l/
• Rhymes: -ɪkÉ™l

Origin

From Swedish nickel, an abbreviation of German kupfernickel ("a mineral containing copper and nickel"), from koppar ("copper") + Nikolaus ("the devil") due to the deceptive silver colour of the relatively valueless ore. Compare cobalt as related to kobolds.

Full definition of nickel

Noun

1. (uncountable) A silvery elemental metal with an atomic number of 28 and symbol Ni.
2. (US, Canada, countable) A coin worth 5 cents.
3. (US slang, by extension) Five dollars.
4. (US slang, by extension) Five hundred dollars.
5. (US slang, sometimes the nickel or'' the hot nickel) Interstate 5, a highway that runs along the west coast of the United States.
6. (slang) A playing card with the rank of five
7. (US slang) A five-year prison sentence.

Derived terms

Related terms

• kupfernickel
• niccolite
• nife
• nitinol

Verb

1. (transitive) To plate with nickel.