See nithing in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
{
"derived": [
{
"_dis1": "0 0",
"word": "nidering"
},
{
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"word": "niddering"
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"word": "nithing post"
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"name": "inh"
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"name": "inh"
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"3": "nithing"
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"expansion": "Old English niðing",
"name": "inh"
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"expansion": "North Germanic",
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},
{
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"3": "*nīþą",
"t": "envy; hate; malice"
},
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},
{
"args": {
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"2": "ine-pro",
"3": "*neyH-",
"t": "to be angry"
},
"expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *neyH- (“to be angry”)",
"name": "der"
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{
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},
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"name": "glossary"
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"2": "nidding"
},
"expansion": "Danish nidding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "LL.",
"2": "nidingus"
},
"expansion": "Late Latin nidingus",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gmh",
"2": "nīdinc"
},
"expansion": "Middle High German nīdinc",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "de",
"2": "Neiding",
"t": "(archaic) one who is envious"
},
"expansion": "German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "non",
"2": "níðingr"
},
"expansion": "Old Norse níðingr",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "is",
"2": "níðingur",
"t": "scoundrel, rascal"
},
"expansion": "Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "no",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Norwegian niding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gmq-osw",
"2": "nīþinger"
},
"expansion": "Old Swedish nīþinger",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "sv",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Swedish niding",
"name": "cog"
}
],
"etymology_text": "From Middle English nithing, nithinc, nything, nythyng, nythynge, niþinge, nyþing, nyþyng, Early Middle English niðing, niþinc, niþincke (“coward, wretch; good-for-nothing; term of address for a boy or lad; stingy or miserly person; niggardly, miserly, stingy”), from Late Old English nithing, Old English niðing, nīþing (“coward; wretch; outlaw, villain”), from a North Germanic language, from Proto-Germanic *nīþą (“envy; hate; malice”) (from Proto-Indo-European *neyH- (“to be angry”)) + *-ingō, *-ungō (suffix forming gerund nouns from verbs).\nThe English word is cognate with Danish nidding, Late Latin nidingus, nithingus, Middle High German nīdinc, nīdunc (modern German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)), Old Norse níðingr (Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”), Norwegian niding), Old Swedish nīþinger (modern Swedish niding).",
"forms": [
{
"form": "nithings",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
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"expansion": "nithing (plural nithings)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
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"ni‧thing"
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1605, M. N. [pseudonym; William Camden], “The Languages”, in Remaines of a Greater Worke, Concerning Britaine, […], London: […] G[eorge] E[ld] for Simon Waterson, →OCLC, page 30:",
"text": "[W]hen there was a daungerous rebellion againſt King William Rufus and Rocheſter Caſtle then the moſt important & ſtrongeſt fort of this Realm was ſtowtly kept againſt him, after that he had but proclaimed that his ſubjects ſhould repaire thither to his Campe, vpon no other penaltie, but that whoſoeuer refuſed to come, ſhould be reputed a Niding: they ſwarmed to him immediatly from all ſides in ſuch numbers, that he had in a few daies an infinite Armie, and the rebells therewith weere ſo terrified, that they forthwith yeelded.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1789, Robert Henry, chapter VII, in The History of Great Britain, from the First Invasion of It by the Romans under Julius Cæsar. […], 2nd edition, Dublin: Printed for P. Byrne, […], and J. Jones, […], →OCLC, book II, page 472:",
"text": "To call a Dane a nithing, was like ſetting fire to gunpowder, and inſtantly excited ſuch a flame of rage, as nothing but his own blood or the blood of the offender could extinguiſh [...].",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1903 April 22, Ottilie A[delina] Liljencrantz, “The Game of Swords”, in The Ward of King Canute: A Romance of the Danish Conquest, Chicago, Ill.: Published by A[lexander] C[aldwell] McClurg & Co., →OCLC, page 74:",
"text": "To get gold to buy peace, they will sell their children into slavery. Sooner than look our swords in the face, they will yield us their daughters to be our thralls! Oath-breakers, nithings! Will you be beaten by such? Vikings, Odinmen, forward!",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1905, George Burton Adams, “Feudalism and a Strong King”, in William Hunt, Reginald L[ane] Poole, editors, The History of England From the Norman Conquest to the Death of John (1066–1216) (The Political History of England in Twelve Volumes; II), London, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 76:",
"text": "For this siege the king again appealed to the country and called for the help of all under the old Saxon penalty of the disgraceful name of \"nithing.\"",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2010 May 21, Michael Ejercito, “Libertarianism, Federalism, and Racism [comment section]”, in Ilya Somin, The Volokh Conspiracy, archived from the original on 2019-04-03:",
"text": "Do victims of the Holocaust and anti-Judaism care about how logical and unmalicious Jacoby's motives are? Do you think Jeff Jacoby is a Nazi nithing or a Holocaust denier?",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2014, Joanna Fulford, chapter 11, in Surrender to the Viking, Don Mills, Ont.: Harlequin Historical, →ISBN, page 139:",
"text": "Surely there must be one among this crowd of nithings who has the guts to face a woman in combat?",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A coward, a dastard; a wretch."
],
"id": "en-nithing-en-noun-tr8FTVGI",
"links": [
[
"coward",
"coward"
],
[
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"dastard"
],
[
"wretch",
"wretch"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) A coward, a dastard; a wretch."
],
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{
"word": "nidering"
},
{
"word": "niddering"
},
{
"word": "coward"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
},
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"ref": "1906, Thomas Hodgkin, “Edward the Confessor. (1042–1066.)”, in The History of England: From the Earliest Times to the Norman Conquest, London, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 451:",
"text": "And for the moment, though he [Sweyn II of Denmark] escaped as usual to Baldwin [V, Count of Flanders]'s land and dwelt at Bruges, he was solemnly proclaimed a nithing or vile person (the most ignominious term in the Teutonic vocabulary) by the whole host, with the king, his brother-in-law, at their head.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A wicked person; also, one who has acted immorally or unlawfully."
],
"id": "en-nithing-en-noun-euzvLfAI",
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"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) A wicked person; also, one who has acted immorally or unlawfully."
],
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{
"word": "villain"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
}
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"sounds": [
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"ipa": "/ˈnaɪðɪŋ/",
"tags": [
"General-American",
"Received-Pronunciation"
]
},
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"synonyms": [
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
"word": "niding"
}
],
"word": "nithing"
}
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{
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"expansion": "Danish nidding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "LL.",
"2": "nidingus"
},
"expansion": "Late Latin nidingus",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
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"2": "nīdinc"
},
"expansion": "Middle High German nīdinc",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "de",
"2": "Neiding",
"t": "(archaic) one who is envious"
},
"expansion": "German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "non",
"2": "níðingr"
},
"expansion": "Old Norse níðingr",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "is",
"2": "níðingur",
"t": "scoundrel, rascal"
},
"expansion": "Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "no",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Norwegian niding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gmq-osw",
"2": "nīþinger"
},
"expansion": "Old Swedish nīþinger",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "sv",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Swedish niding",
"name": "cog"
}
],
"etymology_text": "From Middle English nithing, nithinc, nything, nythyng, nythynge, niþinge, nyþing, nyþyng, Early Middle English niðing, niþinc, niþincke (“coward, wretch; good-for-nothing; term of address for a boy or lad; stingy or miserly person; niggardly, miserly, stingy”), from Late Old English nithing, Old English niðing, nīþing (“coward; wretch; outlaw, villain”), from a North Germanic language, from Proto-Germanic *nīþą (“envy; hate; malice”) (from Proto-Indo-European *neyH- (“to be angry”)) + *-ingō, *-ungō (suffix forming gerund nouns from verbs).\nThe English word is cognate with Danish nidding, Late Latin nidingus, nithingus, Middle High German nīdinc, nīdunc (modern German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)), Old Norse níðingr (Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”), Norwegian niding), Old Swedish nīþinger (modern Swedish niding).",
"forms": [
{
"form": "more nithing",
"tags": [
"comparative"
]
},
{
"form": "most nithing",
"tags": [
"superlative"
]
}
],
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"args": {},
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"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "adj",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "45 22 25 8",
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}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1770, [Paul Henri] Mallet, “The Passion of the Ancient Scandinavians for Arms: Their Valour: The Manner in which They Made War. […]”, in [Thomas Percy], transl., Northern Antiquities: Or, a Description of the Manners, Customs, Religion and Laws of the Ancient Danes, and Other Northern Nations; Including Those of Our Own Saxon Ancestors. […] In Two Volumes. […], volume I, London: Printed for T. Carnan and Co. […], →OCLC, pages 218–219:",
"text": "In Denmark, and through all the North, they provoked a man to fight a duel, by publicly calling him Niding or \"infamous†:\" for he who had received ſo deep a ſtain, without endeavouring to waſh it out with the blood of his adverſary, would have loſt much more than the life he was ſo deſirous to ſave. [Footnote †: [...] King William Rufus having occaſion to draw together a ſudden body of forces, only ſent word to all ſuch as held of him in fee, that thoſe who did not repair to his aſſiſtance, ſhould be deemed Nithing; and without further ſummons they all flocked to his ſtandard.]",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1877, J[ames] Franck Bright, “William II. 1087–1100.”, in A History of England: Period I. Mediæval Monarchy from the Departure of the Romans to Richard III. 449–1485, 2nd revised edition, London, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Rivingtons […], →OCLC, page 57:",
"text": "Odo [of Bayeux] occupied the castle of Rochester, and against it William [II] led a body of English, collected by a threat that all who had remained behind should be proclaimed \"nithing,\" or worthless.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Cowardly, dastardly."
],
"id": "en-nithing-en-adj-KNHwfZgc",
"links": [
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"Cowardly",
"cowardly"
],
[
"dastardly",
"dastardly"
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],
"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) Cowardly, dastardly."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "nidering"
},
{
"word": "niddering"
},
{
"word": "cowardly"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
{
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"ref": "1935, “[The Older Law of the Gulathing] The Law of Personal Rights”, in Laurence M[arcellus] Larson, transl., The Earliest Norwegian Laws: Being the Gulathing Law and the Frostathing Law: Translated from the Old Norwegian (Records of Civilization, Sources and Studies; 20), New York, N.Y.: Columbia University Press, →OCLC, page 137; reprinted Clark, N.J.: The Lawbook Exchange, 2008, →ISBN, section 178 (Concerning Housebreaking), page 137:",
"text": "If a man breaks into another man's house to attack him and kill him, that shall be called a nithing crime. It is a nithing crime if a man slays one to whom he has given pledges of safety. [...] And in every case when a man is [found] guilty of a nithing crime he shall depart as an outlaw who has forfeited his personal rights and his property to the last penny, land as well as movables.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Notoriously evil or wicked; infamous."
],
"id": "en-nithing-en-adj-ufJ4jkM~",
"links": [
[
"Notoriously",
"notoriously"
],
[
"evil",
"evil#Adjective"
],
[
"wicked",
"wicked"
],
[
"infamous",
"infamous"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) Notoriously evil or wicked; infamous."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "nidering"
},
{
"word": "niddering"
},
{
"word": "evil"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
}
],
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"ipa": "/ˈnaɪðɪŋ/",
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]
},
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{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
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}
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"word": "nidering"
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{
"word": "nithing stake"
}
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{
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"3": "*nīþą",
"t": "envy; hate; malice"
},
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{
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"name": "der"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gerund"
},
"expansion": "gerund",
"name": "glossary"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "noun"
},
"expansion": "noun",
"name": "glossary"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "verb"
},
"expansion": "verb",
"name": "glossary"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "da",
"2": "nidding"
},
"expansion": "Danish nidding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "LL.",
"2": "nidingus"
},
"expansion": "Late Latin nidingus",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gmh",
"2": "nīdinc"
},
"expansion": "Middle High German nīdinc",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "de",
"2": "Neiding",
"t": "(archaic) one who is envious"
},
"expansion": "German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "non",
"2": "níðingr"
},
"expansion": "Old Norse níðingr",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "is",
"2": "níðingur",
"t": "scoundrel, rascal"
},
"expansion": "Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "no",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Norwegian niding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gmq-osw",
"2": "nīþinger"
},
"expansion": "Old Swedish nīþinger",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "sv",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Swedish niding",
"name": "cog"
}
],
"etymology_text": "From Middle English nithing, nithinc, nything, nythyng, nythynge, niþinge, nyþing, nyþyng, Early Middle English niðing, niþinc, niþincke (“coward, wretch; good-for-nothing; term of address for a boy or lad; stingy or miserly person; niggardly, miserly, stingy”), from Late Old English nithing, Old English niðing, nīþing (“coward; wretch; outlaw, villain”), from a North Germanic language, from Proto-Germanic *nīþą (“envy; hate; malice”) (from Proto-Indo-European *neyH- (“to be angry”)) + *-ingō, *-ungō (suffix forming gerund nouns from verbs).\nThe English word is cognate with Danish nidding, Late Latin nidingus, nithingus, Middle High German nīdinc, nīdunc (modern German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)), Old Norse níðingr (Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”), Norwegian niding), Old Swedish nīþinger (modern Swedish niding).",
"forms": [
{
"form": "nithings",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {},
"expansion": "nithing (plural nithings)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
"hyphenation": [
"ni‧thing"
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"English terms with archaic senses",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1605, M. N. [pseudonym; William Camden], “The Languages”, in Remaines of a Greater Worke, Concerning Britaine, […], London: […] G[eorge] E[ld] for Simon Waterson, →OCLC, page 30:",
"text": "[W]hen there was a daungerous rebellion againſt King William Rufus and Rocheſter Caſtle then the moſt important & ſtrongeſt fort of this Realm was ſtowtly kept againſt him, after that he had but proclaimed that his ſubjects ſhould repaire thither to his Campe, vpon no other penaltie, but that whoſoeuer refuſed to come, ſhould be reputed a Niding: they ſwarmed to him immediatly from all ſides in ſuch numbers, that he had in a few daies an infinite Armie, and the rebells therewith weere ſo terrified, that they forthwith yeelded.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1789, Robert Henry, chapter VII, in The History of Great Britain, from the First Invasion of It by the Romans under Julius Cæsar. […], 2nd edition, Dublin: Printed for P. Byrne, […], and J. Jones, […], →OCLC, book II, page 472:",
"text": "To call a Dane a nithing, was like ſetting fire to gunpowder, and inſtantly excited ſuch a flame of rage, as nothing but his own blood or the blood of the offender could extinguiſh [...].",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1903 April 22, Ottilie A[delina] Liljencrantz, “The Game of Swords”, in The Ward of King Canute: A Romance of the Danish Conquest, Chicago, Ill.: Published by A[lexander] C[aldwell] McClurg & Co., →OCLC, page 74:",
"text": "To get gold to buy peace, they will sell their children into slavery. Sooner than look our swords in the face, they will yield us their daughters to be our thralls! Oath-breakers, nithings! Will you be beaten by such? Vikings, Odinmen, forward!",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1905, George Burton Adams, “Feudalism and a Strong King”, in William Hunt, Reginald L[ane] Poole, editors, The History of England From the Norman Conquest to the Death of John (1066–1216) (The Political History of England in Twelve Volumes; II), London, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 76:",
"text": "For this siege the king again appealed to the country and called for the help of all under the old Saxon penalty of the disgraceful name of \"nithing.\"",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2010 May 21, Michael Ejercito, “Libertarianism, Federalism, and Racism [comment section]”, in Ilya Somin, The Volokh Conspiracy, archived from the original on 2019-04-03:",
"text": "Do victims of the Holocaust and anti-Judaism care about how logical and unmalicious Jacoby's motives are? Do you think Jeff Jacoby is a Nazi nithing or a Holocaust denier?",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2014, Joanna Fulford, chapter 11, in Surrender to the Viking, Don Mills, Ont.: Harlequin Historical, →ISBN, page 139:",
"text": "Surely there must be one among this crowd of nithings who has the guts to face a woman in combat?",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A coward, a dastard; a wretch."
],
"links": [
[
"coward",
"coward"
],
[
"dastard",
"dastard"
],
[
"wretch",
"wretch"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) A coward, a dastard; a wretch."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "nidering"
},
{
"word": "niddering"
},
{
"word": "coward"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English terms with archaic senses",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1906, Thomas Hodgkin, “Edward the Confessor. (1042–1066.)”, in The History of England: From the Earliest Times to the Norman Conquest, London, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 451:",
"text": "And for the moment, though he [Sweyn II of Denmark] escaped as usual to Baldwin [V, Count of Flanders]'s land and dwelt at Bruges, he was solemnly proclaimed a nithing or vile person (the most ignominious term in the Teutonic vocabulary) by the whole host, with the king, his brother-in-law, at their head.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A wicked person; also, one who has acted immorally or unlawfully."
],
"links": [
[
"wicked",
"wicked#Adjective"
],
[
"acted",
"act#Verb"
],
[
"immorally",
"immorally"
],
[
"unlawfully",
"unlawfully"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) A wicked person; also, one who has acted immorally or unlawfully."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "villain"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˈnaɪðɪŋ/",
"tags": [
"General-American",
"Received-Pronunciation"
]
},
{
"audio": "En-uk-nithing.oga",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/9c/En-uk-nithing.oga/En-uk-nithing.oga.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/En-uk-nithing.oga"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "niding"
}
],
"word": "nithing"
}
{
"categories": [
"English adjectives",
"English countable nouns",
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English nouns",
"English terms derived from Middle English",
"English terms derived from North Germanic languages",
"English terms derived from Old English",
"English terms derived from Proto-Germanic",
"English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European",
"English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *neyH-",
"English terms inherited from Middle English",
"English terms inherited from Old English",
"English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic",
"Entries with translation boxes",
"Pages with 1 entry",
"Pages with entries",
"en:People"
],
"etymology_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "ine-pro",
"3": "*neyH-"
},
"expansion": "",
"name": "root"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "enm",
"3": "nithing"
},
"expansion": "Middle English nithing",
"name": "inh"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "enm",
"3": "niðing"
},
"expansion": "Middle English niðing",
"name": "inh"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "ang",
"3": "nithing"
},
"expansion": "Old English nithing",
"name": "inh"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "ang",
"3": "niðing"
},
"expansion": "Old English niðing",
"name": "inh"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "gmq",
"3": "-"
},
"expansion": "North Germanic",
"name": "der"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "gem-pro",
"3": "*nīþą",
"t": "envy; hate; malice"
},
"expansion": "Proto-Germanic *nīþą (“envy; hate; malice”)",
"name": "inh"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "ine-pro",
"3": "*neyH-",
"t": "to be angry"
},
"expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *neyH- (“to be angry”)",
"name": "der"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gerund"
},
"expansion": "gerund",
"name": "glossary"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "noun"
},
"expansion": "noun",
"name": "glossary"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "verb"
},
"expansion": "verb",
"name": "glossary"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "da",
"2": "nidding"
},
"expansion": "Danish nidding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "LL.",
"2": "nidingus"
},
"expansion": "Late Latin nidingus",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gmh",
"2": "nīdinc"
},
"expansion": "Middle High German nīdinc",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "de",
"2": "Neiding",
"t": "(archaic) one who is envious"
},
"expansion": "German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "non",
"2": "níðingr"
},
"expansion": "Old Norse níðingr",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "is",
"2": "níðingur",
"t": "scoundrel, rascal"
},
"expansion": "Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”)",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "no",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Norwegian niding",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "gmq-osw",
"2": "nīþinger"
},
"expansion": "Old Swedish nīþinger",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "sv",
"2": "niding"
},
"expansion": "Swedish niding",
"name": "cog"
}
],
"etymology_text": "From Middle English nithing, nithinc, nything, nythyng, nythynge, niþinge, nyþing, nyþyng, Early Middle English niðing, niþinc, niþincke (“coward, wretch; good-for-nothing; term of address for a boy or lad; stingy or miserly person; niggardly, miserly, stingy”), from Late Old English nithing, Old English niðing, nīþing (“coward; wretch; outlaw, villain”), from a North Germanic language, from Proto-Germanic *nīþą (“envy; hate; malice”) (from Proto-Indo-European *neyH- (“to be angry”)) + *-ingō, *-ungō (suffix forming gerund nouns from verbs).\nThe English word is cognate with Danish nidding, Late Latin nidingus, nithingus, Middle High German nīdinc, nīdunc (modern German Neiding (“(archaic) one who is envious”)), Old Norse níðingr (Icelandic níðingur (“scoundrel, rascal”), Norwegian niding), Old Swedish nīþinger (modern Swedish niding).",
"forms": [
{
"form": "more nithing",
"tags": [
"comparative"
]
},
{
"form": "most nithing",
"tags": [
"superlative"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {},
"expansion": "nithing (comparative more nithing, superlative most nithing)",
"name": "en-adj"
}
],
"hyphenation": [
"ni‧thing"
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "adj",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"English terms with archaic senses",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1770, [Paul Henri] Mallet, “The Passion of the Ancient Scandinavians for Arms: Their Valour: The Manner in which They Made War. […]”, in [Thomas Percy], transl., Northern Antiquities: Or, a Description of the Manners, Customs, Religion and Laws of the Ancient Danes, and Other Northern Nations; Including Those of Our Own Saxon Ancestors. […] In Two Volumes. […], volume I, London: Printed for T. Carnan and Co. […], →OCLC, pages 218–219:",
"text": "In Denmark, and through all the North, they provoked a man to fight a duel, by publicly calling him Niding or \"infamous†:\" for he who had received ſo deep a ſtain, without endeavouring to waſh it out with the blood of his adverſary, would have loſt much more than the life he was ſo deſirous to ſave. [Footnote †: [...] King William Rufus having occaſion to draw together a ſudden body of forces, only ſent word to all ſuch as held of him in fee, that thoſe who did not repair to his aſſiſtance, ſhould be deemed Nithing; and without further ſummons they all flocked to his ſtandard.]",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1877, J[ames] Franck Bright, “William II. 1087–1100.”, in A History of England: Period I. Mediæval Monarchy from the Departure of the Romans to Richard III. 449–1485, 2nd revised edition, London, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Rivingtons […], →OCLC, page 57:",
"text": "Odo [of Bayeux] occupied the castle of Rochester, and against it William [II] led a body of English, collected by a threat that all who had remained behind should be proclaimed \"nithing,\" or worthless.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Cowardly, dastardly."
],
"links": [
[
"Cowardly",
"cowardly"
],
[
"dastardly",
"dastardly"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) Cowardly, dastardly."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "nidering"
},
{
"word": "niddering"
},
{
"word": "cowardly"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English terms with archaic senses",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1935, “[The Older Law of the Gulathing] The Law of Personal Rights”, in Laurence M[arcellus] Larson, transl., The Earliest Norwegian Laws: Being the Gulathing Law and the Frostathing Law: Translated from the Old Norwegian (Records of Civilization, Sources and Studies; 20), New York, N.Y.: Columbia University Press, →OCLC, page 137; reprinted Clark, N.J.: The Lawbook Exchange, 2008, →ISBN, section 178 (Concerning Housebreaking), page 137:",
"text": "If a man breaks into another man's house to attack him and kill him, that shall be called a nithing crime. It is a nithing crime if a man slays one to whom he has given pledges of safety. [...] And in every case when a man is [found] guilty of a nithing crime he shall depart as an outlaw who has forfeited his personal rights and his property to the last penny, land as well as movables.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Notoriously evil or wicked; infamous."
],
"links": [
[
"Notoriously",
"notoriously"
],
[
"evil",
"evil#Adjective"
],
[
"wicked",
"wicked"
],
[
"infamous",
"infamous"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(archaic) Notoriously evil or wicked; infamous."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "nidering"
},
{
"word": "niddering"
},
{
"word": "evil"
}
],
"tags": [
"archaic"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˈnaɪðɪŋ/",
"tags": [
"General-American",
"Received-Pronunciation"
]
},
{
"audio": "En-uk-nithing.oga",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/9c/En-uk-nithing.oga/En-uk-nithing.oga.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/En-uk-nithing.oga"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "niding"
}
],
"word": "nithing"
}
Download raw JSONL data for nithing meaning in English (16.0kB)
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-21 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-12-04 using wiktextract (d8cb2f3 and 4e554ae). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.