nick – English verb conjugation

English verb forms of nick

Nominal Forms

Infinitive: to nick out
Participle: nicked out
Gerund: nicking out

Cognates

-

Indicative

Present

Inick out
younick out
he;she;itnicks out
wenick out
younick out
theynick out

Perfect

Ihave nicked out
youhave nicked out
he;she;ithas nicked out
wehave nicked out
youhave nicked out
theyhave nicked out

Past

Inicked out
younicked out
he;she;itnicked out
wenicked out
younicked out
theynicked out

Pluperfect

Ihad nicked out
youhad nicked out
he;she;ithad nicked out
wehad nicked out
youhad nicked out
theyhad nicked out

Future

Iwill nick out
youwill nick out
he;she;itwill nick out
wewill nick out
youwill nick out
theywill nick out

Future Perfect

Iwill have nicked out
youwill have nicked out
he;she;itwill have nicked out
wewill have nicked out
youwill have nicked out
theywill have nicked out

Subjunctive

Present

Inick out
younick out
he;she;itnick out
wenick out
younick out
theynick out

Perfect

Ihave nicked out
youhave nicked out
he;she;ithave nicked out
wehave nicked out
youhave nicked out
theyhave nicked out

Imperfect

Inicked out
younicked out
he;she;itnicked out
wenicked out
younicked out
theynicked out

Pluperfect

Ihad nicked out
youhad nicked out
he;she;ithad nicked out
wehad nicked out
youhad nicked out
theyhad nicked out

Conditional

Present

Iwould nick out
youwould nick out
he;she;itwould nick out
wewould nick out
youwould nick out
theywould nick out

Perfect

Iwould have nicked out
youwould have nicked out
he;she;itwould have nicked out
wewould have nicked out
youwould have nicked out
theywould have nicked out

Imperative

younick out
weLet's nick out
younick out

Progressive (Continuous) Forms

Indicative

Present

Iam nicking out
youare nicking out
he;she;itis nicking out
weare nicking out
youare nicking out
theyare nicking out

Perfect

Ihave been nicking out
youhave been nicking out
he;she;ithas been nicking out
wehave been nicking out
youhave been nicking out
theyhave been nicking out

Past

Iwas nicking out
youwere nicking out
he;she;itwas nicking out
wewere nicking out
youwere nicking out
theywere nicking out

Pluperfect

Ihad been nicking out
youhad been nicking out
he;she;ithad been nicking out
wehad been nicking out
youhad been nicking out
theyhad been nicking out

Future

Iwill be nicking out
youwill be nicking out
he;she;itwill be nicking out
wewill be nicking out
youwill be nicking out
theywill be nicking out

Future Perfect

Iwill have been nicking out
youwill have been nicking out
he;she;itwill have been nicking out
wewill have been nicking out
youwill have been nicking out
theywill have been nicking out

Conditional

Present

Iwould be nicking out
youwould be nicking out
he;she;itwould be nicking out
wewould be nicking out
youwould be nicking out
theywould be nicking out

Perfect

Iwould have been nicking out
youwould have been nicking out
he;she;itwould have been nicking out
wewould have been nicking out
youwould have been nicking out
theywould have been nicking out

Other

Verbs conjugated like 'nick'

abandon, abduct, abear, aberr, abject, abord, abort, abound, abraid, abray, abrook, abscind, abscond, absist, absorb, abstain, abstract, accend, accent, accept, etc. (List truncated at 20 verbs)

Verbs similar to 'nick'

dick, hick, kick, knick, lick, nack, neck, nice, nock, pick,

Additional Information

Phrasal Verbs

Etymology

1. "notch, groove, slit," 1483, nyke, of unknown origin, possibly infl. by M.Fr. niche "niche." The verb is first attested 1530. Sense of "to steal" is from 1869, probably from earlier slang sense of "to catch, take unawares, arrest" (1622). Nick of time is first attested 1643, possibly from an old custom of recording time as it passed by making notches on a tally stick, though the general sense of "critical moment" is older (1577) than the phrase.
2. 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.
3. 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. See: Danish 'nikke', Dutch 'knikken', Middle High German 'nicken', German, old spelling 'nicken', German, old spelling 'knicken', Swedish 'nicka'.

Verbs referencing "nick"

English notch, Finnish with old forms nigiä.

Sample Sentences

  • I nicked myself while I was shaving.
  • This man pauses in his shaving to squint at the piece of paper again, razor hesitant, eye returning anxious but reluctant to the blurred letters. [...] He nicks himself and the tired blood trickles a moment, stops easily these days almost before the cotton-wool sticks. [1974, Thea Astley, A Kindness Cup, Melbourne, Vic.: Thomas Nelson Australia, →ISBN; republished Sydney, N.S.W.; Melbourne, Vic.: Allen & Unwin House of Books, 2012, →ISBN, pages 1–2:]
  • The itch of his Affection ſhould not then / Haue nickt his Captain-ſhip, at ſuch a point, / When halfe to halfe the world oppos'd, he being / The meered queſtion? (The itch of his affection should not then / Have marred his captainship, at such a point, / When half of the world was opposing the other half, he being / the crucial player?) [c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene xiii], page 356, column 2:]
  • But, give him port and potent ſack, / From milkſop he ſtarts up Mohack; / Holds that the happy know no hours; / So through the ſtreets at midnight ſcowers, / Breaks watchmen's heads and chairmen's glaſſes, / And thence proceeds to nicking ſaſhes; […] [c. 1715–1717, Matthew Prior, “Alma: Or, The Progress of the Mind. In Three Cantos”, in The Poetical Works of Matthew Prior, Esq. […], Edinburgh: Printed by Mundell and Son, […], published 1793, →OCLC; republished in Robert Anderson, editor, The Works of the British Poets. […], volume VII, London: Printed for John & Arthur Arch; and for Bell & Bradfute, and J. Mundell & Co. Edinburgh, 1795, →OCLC, canto III, page 466, column 2:]
  • The barbarous custom of docking and nicking the tail, and cutting the ears of horses, is too prevalent. [...] [I]n the loss of their tail, they find even a still greater inconvenience. During summer they are perpetually teazed with swarms of insects that either attempt to suck their blood or deposit their eggs in the rectum, which they have no means of lashing off; and in winter they are deprived of a necessary defence against the cold. [From the Boston Yankee.] [1815, Henry Bracken, “Receipts. To Cure the Grease, Surfeits, Loss of Appetite, Cough, Shortness of Breath; to Purify the Blood, and to Fatten Tired and Wasted Horses. [Additional Information.]”, in Taplin Improved; or A Complete Treatise on the Art of Farriery, […], Troy, N.Y.: Printed and sold by Francis Adancourt, […], →OCLC, pages 117–118:]
  • Nicking a horse has been generally believed to be attended with much difficulty, and to require great ingenuity and art to perform the operation. The nicking alone, is by far the easiest part, as the curing and pullying requires considerable attention and trouble. Nicking is an operation performed for the purpose of making a horse carry an elegant artificial tail, which adds much to his beauty and value. [1830, Richard Mason, “Nicking”, in The Gentleman’s New Pocket Farrier, Comprising a General Description of the Noble and Useful Animal the Horse; […], 5th edition, Richmond, Va.: Printed by Peter Cottom, […], page 48:]
  • An Alluſion is as it were a dalliance or playing with words, like in ſound, vnlike in ſense, by changing, adding, or ſubtracting a letter or two; ſo that words nicking and reſembling one the other, are appliable to diffrent ſignifications. [1605, M. N. [pseudonym; William Camden], “Allusions”, in Remaines of a Greater Worke, Concerning Britaine, […], London: […] G[eorge] E[ld] for Simon Waterson, →OCLC, page 140:]
  • [I]t requires a Critical Nicety both of Wit, and of Judgment, to find out the Genius, or the Propenſions, of a Child, […] The Juſt Seaſon of Doing Things must be Nick'd, and All Accidents Obſerv'd and Improv'd; for Weak Minds are to be as Narrowly Attended, as Sickly Bodies: […] [1692, Roger L’Estrange, “[The Fables of Æsop, &c.] Fab[le] XXXVIII. A Horse and an Asse. [Reflexion].”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC, page 38:]
  • Two balls later, I nick one and it carries beautifully to Peter Bowler at first slip, a complete dolly catch, and he drops it. [2013, Ian Botham, with Dean Wilson, “Steve James – Fine Dining”, in Beefy’s Cricket Tales: My Favourite Stories from On and Off the Field, London: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 145:]
  • My old luck: I never nick'd ſeven that I did not throw ames ace three times following. [1773, [Oliver] Goldsmith, She Stoops to Conquer: Or, The Mistakes of a Night. A Comedy. […], London: […] F[rancis] Newbery, […], →OCLC, Act III, page 63:]
  • The points to nick each main have been mentioned before, and the table on dice will show how many chances there are to throw each of these points with 2 dice, which together form the numerator, and 36 (being all the chances on 2 dice) the denominator of the fraction that expresses the probability. If 5 is the main, 5 will be the only nick, and the chances to throw 5 being 4, ⁴⁄₃₆ is the probability, which is 8 to 1 against nicking 5, and the same against nicking 9. [[1814], William Rouse, “Problem XXX. What are the Probabilities of Nicking each Main?”, in The Doctrine of Chances, or The Theory of Gaming, Made Easy to Every Person Acquainted with Common Arithmetic, […], London: Printed by Gye & Balne, […], for the author, published by Lackington, Allen & Co. […], →OCLC, page 150:]
  • Tom Moor was fond of gaming, and often lost large sums of money; finding his business neglected in his absence, he had a small hazard table set up in one corner of his dining-room, and invited a party of his friends to play at it. [...] [O]ne of them being a constant winner, the others would say, "Damn it, how he nicks them." [1888, “The Jackdaw”, in W[illiam] B[utler] Yeats, editor, Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry (The Camelot Series), London: Walter Scott, […]; New York, N.Y.: Thomas Whittaker; Toronto, Ont.: W. J. Gage & Co., →OCLC, page 304:]
  • A practice then prevailed of blasting without nicking the side of the place which still continues and of conducting the current of air too far by means of brattice, to both of which practices I raised a strong objection. They admitted their inability to make the men nick the coal as they formerly did and thought the application of brattice could not be properly defined, but that it should be left to the discretion of the manager of each particular mine as to the distance openings should be made apart between the intake and return air courses. [1872 February 28, Peter Higson, “[Mines. Reports of the Inspectors of Mines, to Her Majesty’s Secretary of State, for the Year 1871. Chapter 653.] Report of the Working of the Mines Inspection Act (23 & 24 Vict. c. 151.) in the West Lancashire and North Wales District, during the Year ended 31st December 1871.”, in Reports from Commissioners: Twenty-two Volumes. […], volume XVI, London: Printed by George Edward Eyre and William Spottiswode, […], for Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, →OCLC, page 58:]
  • Someone’s nicked my bike!
  • As I'm on the ground, my bat and one of the stumps are grabbed out of my hands. [...] At that point, I look up and see Adrian [Dale] – with two stumps in his hands! Hugh [Morris] has given him one and his brother Gary, who is a policeman, has seen the bloke who nicked it off me and wrestled it off him and given [it] to Adrian. He didn't get my bat back, though. [2013, Ian Botham, with Dean Wilson, “Steve James – Fine Dining”, in Beefy’s Cricket Tales: My Favourite Stories from On and Off the Field, London: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, pages 145–146:]
  • The police nicked him climbing over the fence of the house he’d broken into.
  • Flick knives were pulled on us, and the group demanded we give them all our money, and passports and everything else we had. [...] They [the police] had nicked the knife gang, (who had stayed there, beating the shit out of Nick), and found our passports. [2012, T. Appleby, “Die in Dunkirk or Somewhere in France”, in Life in the Harsh Lane: The Nine Lives, Mishaps, and Adventures of a No-body, [Bloomington, Ind.]: Xlibris, →ISBN, page 113:]
  • [...] I was always getting nicked when I was a junkie, so I've had my fair share of skirmishes with the law. [2014, Russell Brand, “I am an Anarchist-a”, in Revolution, New York, N.Y.: Ballantine Books, →ISBN, page 81:]