Meaning
A silvery elemental metal with an atomic number of 28 and symbol Ni.
Etymology
Origin: Latin
Etymology tree Ancient Greek νῑ́κη (nī́kē) Proto-Hellenic *lāwós Ancient Greek λᾱός (lāós) Ancient Greek Νῑκόλᾱος (Nīkólāos)bor. Latin Nīcolāusbor. German Nikolaus German Nickelbor. English nickel Borrowed from German Nickel, first used in a text by the Swedish mineralogist Axel F. Cronstedt as an abbreviation of Kupfernickel (“a mineral containing copper and nickel”), from Kupfer (“copper”) + Nickel (“insignificant person, goblin”), originally nickname of Nikolaus (“Nicholas”), due to the deceptive silver colour of the relatively valueless ore. Compare cobalt as related to kobolds.
Synonyms & Antonyms
NYT Puzzle Appearances
Accepted in 2 recorded puzzles: