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Neat vs Tidy - What's the difference?

neat | tidy | Synonyms |

Tidy is a synonym of neat.



As nouns the difference between neat and tidy

is that neat is a bull or cow while tidy is a tabletop container for pens and stationery.

As adjectives the difference between neat and tidy

is that neat is clean, tidy; free from dirt or impurities while tidy is in good time; at the right time; timely; seasonable; opportune; favourable; fit; suitable.

As a verb tidy is

to make tidy; to neaten.

As an interjection tidy is

expression of positive agreement, usually in reply to a question.

As a proper noun Tidy is

{{surname|lang=en}.

neat

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl) nete, neat, from (etyl) . More at (l).

Noun

(en-noun)
  • (archaic) A bull or cow.
  • * 1663 ,
    • Sturdy he was, and no less able / Than Hercules to cleanse a stable; / As great a drover, and as great / A critic too, in hog or neat .
  • * Shakespeare
    • The steer, the heifer, and the calf / Are all called neat .
  • * Tusser
    • a neat and a sheep of his own.
  • (archaic) Cattle collectively.
  • * 1596 , (Edmund Spenser), The Faerie Queene , VI.9:
    • From thence into the open fields he fled, / Whereas the Heardes were keeping of their neat
    Derived terms
    * neatherd * neatfoot, neatsfoot

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) . See (l).

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Clean, tidy; free from dirt or impurities.
  • :
  • *
  • *:Then his sallow face brightened, for the hall had been carefully furnished, and was very clean. ¶ There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.
  • *{{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
    • , chapter=Foreword citation , passage=A very neat old woman, still in her good outdoor coat and best beehive hat, was sitting at a polished mahogany table on whose surface there were several scored scratches so deep that a triangular piece of the veneer had come cleanly away,
  • Free from contaminants; unadulterated, undiluted. Particularly of liquor and cocktails; see usage below.
  • :
  • (lb) Conditions with a liquid reagent or gas performed with no standard solvent or cosolvent.
  • :
  • (lb) With all deductions or allowances made; net.
  • Having a simple elegance or style; clean, trim, tidy, tasteful.
  • :
  • Well-executed or delivered; clever, skillful, precise.
  • :
  • (lb) Good, excellent, desirable.
  • :
  • *{{quote-news, year=2011, date=June 20, author=Phil Mickelson (being quoted), work=BBC News
    • , title= US Open: Jack Nicklaus tips Rory McIlroy for greatness , passage="You can tell that Rory has had this type of talent in him for some time now, and to see him putting it together is pretty neat to see."}}
    Coordinate terms
    * (undiluted liquor or cocktail) straight up, up, straight
    Antonyms
    * (undiluted liquor or cocktail) on the rocks
    Usage notes
    In bartending, neat' has the formal meaning “a liquor pour straight from the bottle into a glass, at room temperature, without ice or chilling”. This is contrasted with , and with drinks that are chilled but strained (stirred over ice to chill, but poured through a strainer so that there is no ice in the glass), which is formally referred to as up. However, the terminology is a point of significant confusion, with ' neat , up, straight up, and straight being used by bar patrons (and some bartenders) variously and ambiguously to mean either “unchilled” or “chilled” (but without ice in the glass), and hence clarification is often required.“ Up, Neat, Straight Up, or On the Rocks”, Jeffrey Morgenthaler, Friday, May 9th, 2008Walkart, C.G. (2002). National Bartending Center Instruction Manual. Oceanside, California: Bartenders America, Inc. p. 106

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • An artificial intelligence researcher who believes that solutions should be elegant, clear and provably correct. Compare scruffy.

    • References

    Anagrams

    * * * ----

    tidy

    English

    Adjective

    (er)
  • (obsolete) In good time; at the right time; timely; seasonable; opportune; favourable; fit; suitable.
  • * Tusser
    • if weather be fair and tidy
  • (lb) Brave; smart; skillful; fine; good.
  • Appropriate or suitable as regards occasion, circumstances, arrangement, or order.
  • Arranged neatly and in order.
    • Keep Britain tidy .
  • Not messy; neat and controlled.
  • Satisfactory; comfortable.
  • (informal) Generous, considerable.
    • The scheme made a tidy profit.

    Synonyms

    * neat * orderly * presentable * spick and span

    Antonyms

    * messy * untidy

    Derived terms

    * hair-tidy

    Related terms

    * tidily * tidiness

    Verb

  • To make tidy; to neaten.

    • Noun

    (tidies)
  • A tabletop container for pens and stationery.
    • a desk tidy
  • A cover, often of tatting, drawn work, or other ornamental work, for the back of a chair, the arms of a sofa, etc.
  • (dated) A child's pinafore.
    • (Wright)
  • The wren.
    • (Drayton)

    Interjection

    (en interjection)
  • (Wales) Expression of positive agreement, usually in reply to a question.

    • Usage notes

    Often used by people from South Wales to end a sentence or as a reply to a question meaning "Great" or "Fine", for example "I'm going to the shops for ten fags" may get the reply "Tidy." 1000 English basic words