nice
nice — adjective
1. Giving you a good feeling when you see it, hear it, do it, or experience it.
Giving you a good feeling when you see it, hear it, do it, or experience it.
We had a nice lunch at the little café near the river.
The weather was sunny and nice, so Soraya walked to the office.
That is a really nice coat, Dewi — where did you find it?
Seeing Christopher again after so many years was really nice.
The Watanabe family spent a nice evening cooking together.
- unpleasant
the direct opposite, describing things that give a bad feeling
文法句型
it + be + nice + to-infinitive
nice + noun
常見錯誤
2. Used before a positive adjective to make it stronger, giving the feeling that th
Used before a positive adjective to make it stronger, giving the feeling that the quality is exactly as you want it.
The soup is nice and hot — just what I needed on a cold day.
nice and + adjective pattern
Caio folded the towels nice and neatly, stacking them in the cupboard.
The path through the forest was nice and shady, so the morning walk felt easy.
Rania always kept her desk nice and tidy, with everything in its proper place.
Bake the bread until it is nice and brown and the crust turns crisp.
- pleasantly
an adverb, not a structure; used differently in a sentence
- comfortably
similar intensifying idea but used as an adverb, not in the 'nice and' pattern
文法句型
nice and + adjective
用法筆記
Only used with positive, welcome qualities such as warm, clean, quiet, and tidy. Cannot combine with negative adjectives like 'cold' (when cold is unwelcome), 'dirty', or 'noisy'.
常見錯誤
3. Friendly, helpful, or showing care toward other people.
Friendly, helpful, or showing care toward other people.
The nurse was very nice to the worried family and explained everything clearly.
be nice to someone
It was nice of Kemi to help us move the heavy furniture.
it is nice of someone to do something
My neighbours are always nice — they bring my mail when I travel.
Takeshi left a nice note for his roommate, thanking him for the help.
The teacher was nice enough to give the class extra time for the test.
- kind
slightly stronger and more formal than 'nice'
- friendly
focuses on a warm, approachable manner
- polite
focuses on good manners and respectfulness
- thoughtful
emphasises paying attention to what others need
文法句型
be nice to someone
it is nice of someone to do something
be nice enough to do something
用法筆記
Superlative form 'nicest' is very common in this sense: 'She is the nicest person I have ever met.'
常見錯誤
4. Involving very fine or small differences between things that are otherwise simil
Involving very fine or small differences between things that are otherwise similar.
There is a nice distinction between 'unhappy' and 'sad' that writers learn to use.
nice distinction — fixed phrase for subtle differences
The two dishes look the same, but a nice spice difference makes one warmer.
Chefs train their taste to notice nice differences in flavour between ingredients.
In property law, there is a nice point about who owns the narrow strip.
The professor pointed out a nice shade of meaning between the two synonyms.
文法句型
nice + noun of difference
用法筆記
Always used before a noun in this sense. Common in academic, legal, and analytical contexts. Unlike other senses of 'nice', this one cannot be used predicatively ('*The distinction is nice' sounds dated).