From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Nicety \Ni"ce*ty\, n.; pl. Niceties. [OE. nicet['e]
foolishness.]
1. The quality or state of being nice (in any of the senses
of that word.).
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The miller smiled of her nicety. --Chaucer.
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2. Delicacy or exactness of perception; minuteness of
observation or of discrimination; precision.
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3. A delicate expression, act, mode of treatment,
distinction, or the like; a minute distinction.
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The fineness and niceties of words. --Locke.
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To a nicety, with great exactness or accuracy.
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From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
nicety
n 1: conformity with some esthetic standard of correctness or
propriety; "it was performed with justness and beauty"
[syn: justness, rightness, nicety]
2: a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude;
"without understanding the finer nuances you can't enjoy the
humor"; "don't argue about shades of meaning" [syn: nuance,
nicety, shade, subtlety, refinement]