NA2 Yes, we can.: 2015

Word of the Day

November 17, 2015

nick (noun, verb)

LISTEN

Nick is not only a nickname for Nicholas. A nick is a small cut or mark on a person or a thing, and as a verb it means 'to cut or to make a small mark on something.' In British English, nick is a slang word for prison and, as a verb, it can mean either 'to arrest someone' or 'to steal something.'

Example sentences

Do you want to buy my old cell phone? It has a few nicks but it works fine.

Paul nicked his chin while shaving.

Josh spent three years in the nick after robbing a shop.

The police nicked the robbers as they left the bank.

Somebody nicked my purse out of my bag!

Multi-word forms

in the nick of time: at the last possible moment. Example: "I got to the airport in thenick of time and made my flight!"
in good/bad nick (UK): in relatively good/bad condition. Example: "The car was old, but it was in good nick for its age."
nick off (mainly Australian slang): to leave quickly. Example: "Scott was angry with Jane, so he told her to nick off."

Did you know?

"Old Nick" is one of the many expressions British English speakers use as an informal name for the Devil. It was first used in the 17th century but became much less common after the 1800s.

Origin

Nick dates back to the late 15th century. Its origin is uncertain, but it may be related to the Old English word gehnycned (wrinkled) and the Old Norse word hnykla (to wrinkle).

See full definition

Silhouette of soldier in poppy field

Despite the jubilation, many people felt it was wrong to celebrate because so many people had died during the war.

On 11 November 1919, one year after the war ended, a newspaper announced that it was "Peace Day".

'Peace babies'

Did you know that Jelly Babies were introduced in 1918 to celebrate the end of war? Back then, they were known as 'Peace Babies'

People wore black as they would at a funeral. The king decided there should also be a period of silence to remember those who died.

When the church bells struck 11, people all over the country stood up and bowed their heads. Buses and trains stopped moving. People stopped working. Shopkeepers stopped serving. The electricity was cut off to stop the trams from running. Everyone just stayed silent to think about the soldiers who had died.

When the Cenotaph in London was built in 1920, people laid flowers there in memory of loved ones who had died in the war.

Ever since the first Remembrance Day, people have followed the same tradition: every year on 11 November they stop for a short moment of silence and reflection.

Since 1920 many people have also gathered around the tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey. Here, there is a body of a soldier whose name and rank no one knows. People visit his grave to think about all the soldiers they did not know but who fought for them during the war.

Poppies

Poppies became used as a way to remember soldiers who died in battle, because of how the flowers sprung up and grew on the barren battlefields of World War One.

Paper poppies are still made and sold today to raise money for those who have been injured and affected by war

'In Flanders Fields' was written in May 1915 by a Canadian man called John McCrae and has become a famous wartime poem. It says, "We shall not sleep, though poppies grow in Flanders Fields".

Flanders Fields was a place where many battles took place. The poem meant that, even though soldiers got hurt and sometimes their lives ended in the war, the poppies still grew. The poppies represented hope.

A French lady called Madame Guerin read the poem and liked it so much that she started to sell poppies in America. She did it to raise money for the places in France which had been damaged by the war. She persuaded the British Legion to use them too.

A man called George Howson made and sold the poppies in Britain. He wanted to raise money to help people who had been disabled by the war. A simple poppy design was used so men who had lost a hand could assemble them. Howson said at the time, "I do not think it can be a great success but it is worth trying". The poppy is still worn by millions of people every November.