nifty

[nif-tee] /ˈnɪf ti/
adjective, niftier, niftiest.
1.
attractively stylish or smart:
a nifty new dress for Easter.
2.
very good; fine; excellent:
a nifty idea.
3.
substantial; sizable:
We sold the car for a nifty profit.
noun, plural nifties.
4.
something nifty, as a clever remark or joke.
Origin
1860-65, Americanism; of obscure origin
Related forms
niftily, adverb
Examples from the web for nifty
  • Many of you certainly use some nifty tools on your computer desktops.
  • Waiting in the wings are some nifty ideas for applying ink-jet knowhow to commercial printing.
  • Thirty crucial skills, nifty tips, and shameless shortcuts to improving your game.
  • If evolution has a top-ten list of nifty innovations, then complex social behavior is sure to be on it.
  • Everything from nifty tips on peeling garlic to full-fledged cooking shows are available online.
  • It's a nifty idea that enTourage seems to have pulled off well.
  • Now comes a nifty little chart that ranks the available applications by type.
  • Check out the companion interactive website for nifty extras.
  • Maybe there's a nifty way to take advantage of tides.
  • The story included a nifty graphic to help you compare the milk choices side by side.
British Dictionary definitions for nifty

nifty

/ˈnɪftɪ/
adjective (informal) -tier, -tiest
1.
pleasing, apt, or stylish
2.
quick, agile: he's nifty on his feet
Derived Forms
niftily, adverb
niftiness, noun
Word Origin
C19: of uncertain origin
Word Origin and History for nifty
adj.

"smart, stylish," 1868, of unknown origin, perhaps theatrical slang, first attested in a poem by Bret Harte, who said it was a shortened, altered form of magnificat. Related: Niftily; niftiness.

Slang definitions & phrases for nifty

nifty

adjective

Smart; stylish; neat, slick: a great many niftier and hotter words/ a nifty way to upstage the president (1868+)

adverb

: You did that real nifty

noun
  1. : his six blonde nifties/ Another nifty is the circularization of telephone subscribers
  2. A fifty-dollar bill

[origin unknown; called by Bret Harte, in the 1868 example, ''Short for magnificat'']