nice-nellyism

noun

Prudishness or excessive modesty.

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Meanings

nice-nellyism1

nounnice-nellyism (plural nice-nellyisms)

plural nice-nellyisms

  1. alternativeAlternative form of nice-Nellyism.

nice-Nellyism2

nounnice-Nellyism (countable and uncountable, plural nice-Nellyisms)

plural nice-Nellyisms · alternative nice-nellyism

  1. uncountableusuallyPrudishness or excessive modesty.
  2. countableA euphemism; an act or expression of prudishness or excessive modesty.

    He was a co-founder of the Indianapolis Chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous. ¶ His obituary in the Indianapolis Star said that he himself was not an alcoholic. ¶ This denial was at least partly a nice-Nellyism from the past, I think.

    1976, Kurt Vonnegut, Slapstick, Delacorte Press, Prologue, p. 8

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
nice-nelliness

Origin

From nice Nelly + -ism.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

nice-nellyism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nice-nellyism

MLA

“nice-nellyism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nice-nellyism. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “nice-nellyism,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nice-nellyism.

Source: nice-nellyism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.