Etymology

nimby

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Today it means: Not in my backyard (in objection to an undesirable structure built locally). Full definition →

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nimby · phrase, noun, adjective1

Acronym of not in my back yard. More at NIMBY.

NIMBY · phrase, noun, adjective2

Was used in a 1980 article by British writer Emilie Travel Livezey; popularized by British politician Nicholas Ridley, who was Conservative Secretary of State for the Environment. Prior to that, Joseph A. Lieberman, a member of the US Atomic Energy Commission, gave a keynote address in early 1979 at the Fort Magruder Conference Center in which he reportedly asserted that "the 'nimby' (not in my backyard) syndrome must be eliminated." As reported in the Newport News (Virginia) Daily Press, Tuesday, February 13th, 1979, "Radioactive Waste: National Regulations Needed." Source: WorldHistories.net.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.