different between nick vs saw

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /n?k/
• Homophone: Nick
• Rhymes: -?k

Etymology 1

The noun is derived from Late Middle English nik (“notch, tally; nock of an arrow”). Its further etymology is unknown; a connection with nock (“notch in a bow to hold the bowstring; notch at the rear of an arrow that fits the bowstring; cleft in the buttocks”) has not been clearly established.

The verb appears to be derived from the noun, though the available evidence shows that some of the verb senses predate the noun senses. No connection with words in Germanic languages such as Danish nikke (“to nod”), Middle Dutch nicken (“to bend; to bow”) (modern Dutch knikken (“to nod”)), Middle Low German nicken (“to bend over; to sink”), Middle High German nicken (“to bend; to depress”) (modern German nicken (“to nod”)), Middle Low German knicken (“to bend; to snap”) (modern German knicken (“to bend; to break”), Old Frisian hnekka (“to nod”), and Swedish nicka (“to nod”), has been clearly established.

Noun

nick (plural nicks)

1. A small cut in a surface.
   1. (now rare) A particular place or point considered as marked by a nick; the exact point or critical moment.
   2. (printing, dated) A notch cut crosswise in the shank of a type, to assist a compositor in placing it properly in the stick, and in distribution.
2. Senses connoting something small.
   1. (cricket) A small deflection of the ball off the edge of the bat, often going to the wicket-keeper for a catch.
   2. (genetics) One of the single-stranded DNA segments produced during nick translation.
   3. (real tennis, squash (sport), racquetball) The point where the wall of the court meets the floor.
3. (Britain, New Zealand, slang) Often in the expressions in bad nick and in good nick: condition, state.
4. (Britain, law enforcement, slang) A police station or prison.

Derived terms

• in the nick of time

Translations

Verb

nick (third-person singular simple present nicks, present participle nicking, simple past and past participle nicked)

1. (transitive) To make a nick or notch in; to cut or scratch in a minor way.
   1. (transitive) To make ragged or uneven, as by cutting nicks or notches in; to deface, to mar.
   2. (transitive, rare) To make a crosscut or cuts on the underside of (the tail of a horse, in order to make the animal carry it higher).
2. (transitive, obsolete) To fit into or suit, as by a correspondence of nicks; to tally with.
   1. (transitive) To hit at, or in, the nick; to touch rightly; to strike at the precise point or time.
   2. (transitive, cricket) To hit the ball with the edge of the bat and produce a fine deflection.
   3. (transitive, gaming) To throw or turn up (a number when playing dice); to hit upon.
3. (transitive, mining) To make a cut at the side of the face.
4. (transitive, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, slang) To steal.
5. (transitive, Britain, law enforcement, slang) To arrest.

Derived terms

• nicker
• nicking (noun)

Translations

Etymology 2

From nick(name).

Noun

nick (plural nicks)

1. (Internet) Clipping of nickname.

Verb

nick (third-person singular simple present nicks, present participle nicking, simple past and past participle nicked)

1. (transitive, obsolete) To give or call (someone) by a nickname; to style.

Etymology 3

A variant of nix or nixie.

Noun

nick (plural nicks)

1. (archaic) A nix or nixie (“water spirit”).

References

Further reading

• nick (DNA) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• nick (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• CKIN

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n?k/
• Rhymes: -?k

Verb

nick

1. singular imperative of nicken
2. (colloquial) first-person singular present of nicken

Kashubian

Pronoun

nick

1. nothing

Polish

Etymology

From English nick(name).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?ik/

Noun

nick m inan

1. (Internet) nickname (familiar, invented given name)

Declension

Further reading

• nick in Wielki s?ownik j?zyka polskiego, Instytut J?zyka Polskiego PAN
• nick in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Swedish

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

nick c

1. nod (movement of the head to indicate agreement)
2. header (in football)

Declension

Synonyms

• (header):: nickning c
• (nod):: nickning c

Derived terms

• nickedocka
• nicka
• nicka till

Etymology 2

From the English nickname

Noun

nick n

1. (slang) nick, nickname

Declension

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: sô, IPA^(key): /s??/

  Homophones: (in some non-rhotic accents): soar, sore

• Rhymes: -??
• (US) enPR: sô, IPA^(key): /s?/
• (cot–caught merger) enPR: sä, IPA^(key): /s??/

  (idiosyncratic, past tense of 'see') IPA^(key): /s??l/

Etymology 1

The noun from Middle English sawe, sawgh, from Old English saga, sagu (“saw”), from Proto-Germanic *sagô, *sag? (“saw”), from Proto-Indo-European *sek- (“to cut”). Cognate with West Frisian seage (“saw”), Dutch zaag (“saw”), German Säge (“saw”), Danish sav (“saw”), Swedish såg (“saw”), Icelandic sög (“saw”), and through Indo-European, with Latin sec? (“cut”) and Italian sega (“saw”).

The verb from Middle English sawen, from the noun above.

Noun

saw (plural saws)

1. A tool with a toothed blade used for cutting hard substances, in particular wood or metal
2. A musical saw.
3. A sawtooth wave.

Derived terms

Descendants

• Sranan Tongo: sa

Translations

Verb

saw (third-person singular simple present saws, present participle sawing, simple past sawed, past participle sawed or sawn)

1. (transitive) To cut (something) with a saw.

   They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;

2. (intransitive) To make a motion back and forth similar to cutting something with a saw.

   The fiddler sawed away at his instrument.

3. (intransitive) To be cut with a saw.

   The timber saws smoothly.

4. (transitive) To form or produce (something) by cutting with a saw.

   to saw boards or planks (i.e. to saw logs or timber into boards or planks)

   to saw shingles; to saw out a panel

Derived terms

• saw gourds
• saw wood

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English sawe, from Old English sagu, saga (“story, tale, saying, statement, report, narrative, tradition”), from Proto-West Germanic *sag?, from Proto-Germanic *sag?, *sag? (“saying, story”), from Proto-Indo-European *sek?e-, *sk??-, from *sek?- (“to follow”). Cognate with Dutch sage (“saga”), German Sage (“legend, saga, tale, fable”), Danish sagn (“legend”), Norwegian soga (“story”), Icelandic saga (“story, tale, history”). More at saga, say. Doublet of saga.

Noun

saw (plural saws)

1. (obsolete) Something spoken; speech, discourse.

   • And for thy trew sawys, and I may lyve many wynters, there was never no knyght better rewardid […].

     And for your true discourses, and I may live many winters, there was never no knight better rewarded […].

2. A saying or proverb.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:saying

   • 1599, William Shakespeare, As You Like It, Act II Scene VII, lines 152-5.

     And then the justice, / In fair round belly with good capon lined, / With eyes severe and beard of formal cut, / Full of wise saws and modern instances.

   • 1902, Charles Robert Ashbee, Masque of the Edwards of England, page 8.

     At his crowning […] the priest in his honour preached on the saw, 'Vox populi, vox Dei.'

   • 2017, Andrew Marantz, "Becoming Steve Bannon's Bannon", The New Yorker, Feb 13&20 ed.

     There’s an old saw about Washington, D.C., that staffers in their twenties know more about the minutiae of government than their bosses do.

3. (obsolete) Opinion, idea, belief.

4. (obsolete) Proposal, suggestion; possibility.
   • c. 1350-1400, unknown, The Erl of Toulous

     All they assentyd to the sawe; They thoght he spake reson and lawe.

5. (obsolete) Dictate; command; decree.
   • 1595, Edmund Spenser, Colin Clouts Come Home Againe

     [Love] rules the creatures by his powerful saw.

Derived terms

• soothsaw
• withsaw

Translations

Etymology 3

Verb

saw

1. simple past tense of see
2. (colloquial, nonstandard) past participle of see

Interjection

saw

1. (slang) What's up (either as a greeting or actual question).

Anagrams

• ASW, AWS, Was, aws, was

Atong (India)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /s?aw/

Adjective

saw (Bengali script ???)

1. rotten

Khasi

Etymology

From Proto-Khasian *sa?w, an innovation of the Khasian branch. Cognate with Pnar soo.

Numeral

saw

1. four

Middle English

Noun

saw

1. saw
   • 1387', Ranulf Higden, John of Trevisa (translator), Polychronicon

     Þe more comoun sawe is þat Remus was i-slawe for he leep ouer þe newe walles of Rome.

     The more common opinion is that Remus was slain for he lept over the new walls of Rome.

Northern Kurdish

Noun

saw ?

1. terror
2. horror

Scots

Pronunciation

• (Doric and most Southern Scots dialects) IPA^(key): /sa/
• (Central and some Southern Scots dialects) IPA^(key): /s?/

Etymology 1

Verb

saw

1. (South Scots) simple past tense of sei
2. (Northern and Central) simple past tense of see

Etymology 2

Noun

saw (plural saws)

1. A salve.

Zhuang

Pronunciation

• (Standard Zhuang) IPA^(key): /?a???/
• Tone numbers: saw¹
• Hyphenation: saw

Etymology 1

From Proto-Tai *s??? (“writing; book”), from Middle Chinese ? (MC ???, “writing; book”). Cognate with Lao ?? (s??), Thai ??? (s???).

Alternative forms

• sw

Noun

saw (Sawndip forms ???? or ? or ???? or ????, old orthography s??)

1. written language; writing; script
2. (Chinese) character
3. word
4. book
5. teaching material
6. receipt; voucher

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Proto-Tai *sa?? (“clear; clean”). Cognate with Thai ?? (s?i), Northern Thai ??, Isan ??, Lao ?? (sai), Lü ?? (?ay), Tai Dam ??, Shan ??? (s?ue), Tai Nüa ??? (sáue), Ahom ???????? (saw) or ???????????? (sawu).

Adjective

saw (Sawndip forms ???? or ???? or ?, old orthography s??)

1. clean
2. (of transparent objects, water, etc.) clear
3. (of liquids other than water) watery; thin

Etymology 3

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “from ??”)

Verb

saw (Sawndip forms ???? or ?, old orthography s??)

1. to lose