nickel
B2Neutral. Common in everyday, business, and technical registers.
Definition
Meaning
A silver-white chemical element (symbol Ni, atomic number 28) that is hard, malleable, and resistant to corrosion, used in alloys and plating.
1. A U.S. or Canadian five-cent coin, historically made partly of nickel. 2. A small amount of money, especially five cents. 3. In slang, a prison term of five years. 4. As a verb, to plate with nickel.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
The coin sense is primarily North American. The 'five-year prison term' sense is informal/slang.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
In British English, 'nickel' refers almost exclusively to the metal. The coin sense is American/Canadian; a UK speaker would say 'five pence' or '5p coin'. The slang prison term is primarily US.
Connotations
In US English, 'nickel' has strong cultural connotations related to everyday commerce, poverty ('not worth a nickel'), and childhood ('nickel candy'). In all varieties, 'nickel' can imply something cheap or of low value.
Frequency
Far more frequent in American English due to its dual use for the metal and the coin.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[to be] made of nickelto plate [object] with nickelto cost a nickelto be worth a nickelVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “nickel and dime (v): to drain financially with many small charges.”
- “not worth a plugged nickel: utterly worthless.”
- “nickel tour: a quick, cheap tour.”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to the commodity metal, its market price, and mining investments.
Academic
Used in chemistry, metallurgy, and materials science contexts.
Everyday
Primarily refers to the coin (AmE) or a trivial amount of money. Can be used for nickel-plated objects.
Technical
Describes the element, its properties, and its use in alloys like stainless steel, nichrome, and nickel-cadmium batteries.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The factory will nickel the brass fittings for corrosion resistance.
- Historically, they used to nickel many household items.
American English
- We need to nickel-plate these car parts.
- The old doorknob had been nickeled to make it shine.
adverb
British English
- (Adverbial use is extremely rare and non-standard for 'nickel').
American English
- (Adverbial use is extremely rare and non-standard for 'nickel').
adjective
British English
- The nickel content of the ore is high.
- It's a nickel-based superalloy.
American English
- He gave me a nickel slot machine token.
- She found a rare 1942 nickel coin.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- I found a nickel on the street.
- This coin is made of nickel.
- The battery contains nickel and cadmium.
- A cup of coffee used to cost just a nickel.
- The company was accused of nickelling-and-diming its customers with hidden fees.
- Indonesia is a major exporter of nickel ore.
- The new catalyst uses a nickel-molybdenum alloy to enhance efficiency.
- He was sentenced to a nickel in a federal penitentiary for the fraud scheme.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a 'nickel' as the metal in a 'nickel' coin – it's tough and shiny, just like the coin needs to be.
Conceptual Metaphor
VALUE/COST (e.g., 'nickel-and-dime', 'not worth a nickel') & TIME AS MONEY (e.g., 'a nickel tour' = a cheap, short tour).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- The Russian word 'никель' refers only to the metal. The coin sense does not translate directly.
- Avoid translating 'five cents' or '5¢' as 'никель' unless specifically referring to the U.S. coin.
- The verb 'to nickel' (plate with nickel) can be translated as 'никелировать'.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'nickel' to refer to any small coin outside North America. (Incorrect: *'I need a nickel for the trolley' in the UK.)
- Confusing 'nickel' (5¢) with 'dime' (10¢).
- Misspelling as 'nickle'.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is the word 'nickel' LEAST likely to be used in standard British English?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Modern U.S. nickels are a cupronickel alloy (75% copper, 25% nickel). Historically, they have had varying compositions.
Yes, 'to nickel' means to plate an object with a layer of nickel, often for decoration or corrosion resistance. It is more common in technical contexts.
As a verb, it means to exhaust or harass someone by charging many small amounts or through petty criticisms. As an adjective (nickel-and-dime), it describes something insignificant or involving trivial amounts of money.
It is American criminal slang that draws an analogy between money and time, where 'nickel' (five cents) equates to five years, just as 'dime' can mean ten years.