different between nitty vs natty

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): (modern) /?n?ti?/, (older) /?n?t?/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?n?ti/, /-?i/
• Rhymes: -?ti
• Hyphenation: nit?ty

Etymology 1

From nit +? -y. The “foolish, inane” adjective sense is from nit (“fool, nitwit”), possibly under the influence of nutty (“crazy, mad”).

The origin of the noun sense (“dope fiend, druggie”) is unknown, but could refer to a person who is under the influence of drugs to the extent that he or she is careless about personal hygiene and unkempt. Compare the verb nit (“to be a nitty”).

Adjective

nitty (comparative nittier or more nitty, superlative nittiest or most nitty)

1. (archaic, also figuratively) Full of nits.

   Synonym: lousy
2. (chiefly Britain, slang) Foolish, inane.

   Synonyms: dumb, idiotic

Alternative forms

• nittie (obsolete)

Translations

Noun

nitty (plural nitties)

1. (African-American Vernacular, MLE, slang) A dope fiend, a druggie.

Synonyms

• See Thesaurus:addict

Translations

Etymology 2

Probably from nitty(-gritty).

Adjective

nitty (comparative nittier or more nitty, superlative nittiest or most nitty)

1. (Excessively) detailed or specific; fastidious, fussy, nit-picky.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:fastidious
2. (poker slang) Of a poker player: playing in an overly cautious and reactive manner.

Translations

Etymology 3

A clipping of nitid (“bright, lustrous, shining”), or directly derived from Latin nitidus (“glittering, shining”), from nite? (“to glitter, shine; to look beautiful or bright”) (from Proto-Indo-European *ney- (“to shine”)) + idus (“suffix meaning ‘tending to’”).

Adjective

nitty (comparative more nitty, superlative most nitty)

1. (obsolete, rare) Shining; elegant, spruce.

Translations

References

Further reading

• nitty (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• tinty

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?næti/

• Rhymes: -æti

Etymology 1

Originally slang, perhaps related to neat.

Adjective

natty (comparative nattier, superlative nattiest)

1. (informal) Smart and fashionable. [from late 18th c.]

Translations

Etymology 2

Variant of knotty.

Adjective

natty (comparative nattier, superlative nattiest)

1. (Jamaican, slang) Knotty.

Etymology 3

Clipping of natural +? -y.

Alternative forms

• nattie

Adjective

natty (comparative more natty, superlative most natty)

1. (slang, bodybuilding) Natural, as opposed to steroid enhanced.
2. (slang) national

Noun

natty (plural natties)

1. (slang, bodybuilding) Someone whose muscle gains are natural and not aided by the use of steroids.
2. (slang, sports) A national championship

References

Anagrams

• tanty

Jamaican Creole

Etymology

From English knotty.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?nat?/
• Hyphenation: na?tty

Noun

natty (plural: natty dem, quantified: natty)

1. Abbreviation of natty dreadlocks.

Adjective

natty

1. dreadlocked, knotty, nappy

Verb

natty

1. to grow dreadlocks; to grow locks

Derived terms

• natty dread
• natty dreadlocks

Further reading

• Richard Allsopp (main editor), Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage, 2003 (reprint by The University of the West Indies Press, originally 1996 by Oxford University Press), ISBN 9789766401450 (originally ISBN-10: 976-640-145-4), page 401
• natty – jamaicans.com Jamaican Patois dictionary