My partner doesn’t like the word nice. I agree that it’s often used when we don’t want to say that something is average, okay, a passing grade but nothing special. I looked up the origin of nice and… no wonder! It’s even worse than average.
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English: “foolish, stupid,” from Old French: “silly, simple,” from Latin nescius “ignorant, incapable”
That’s so nice!
the word nice has those definitions?
I do not think most people mean that when they say the word. I know, I do not.
Depending on the tone (verbally only?)…..meaning can go both ways.
Something to keep in mind
I just had to comment on this because I don’t like the word nice either. My ex-partner, and other people I’ve known, used it in a demeaning and sarcastic way, and the association stayed with me. So I don’t use the word; I find other words to use instead like kind, caring, thoughtful, etc.