nibs

American  

[nibz] / nɪbz /

noun

1. Informal: Often Facetious. hisher nibs, a person in authority, especially one who is demanding and tyrannical.

   His nibs wants fresh strawberries in December.

---

nibs British  

/ nɪbz /

noun

1. slang (functioning as singular) a mock title used of someone in authority

---

Etymology

Origin of nibs

First recorded in 1815–25; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

Far from luxuriating in a serene and pristine writing environment, Ms. Lewin reveals, Woolf worked amid “old nibs, bits of string, used matches, rusty paper-clips, crumpled envelopes, broken cigarette-holders, etc.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

Jennie’s organic coconut bites with cacao nibs and dark chocolate worked beautifully for post-colonoscopy problems.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 10, 2024

Meanwhile, cocoa nibs are also a good source of the beneficial compounds found in cocoa because they are literally small bits of the cocoa bean and nothing else.

From National Geographic • Feb. 12, 2024

Once this lip-lock has a good seal, the cookie-cutter digs in with its teeth, of which half are shaped like old-fashioned pen nibs and the other half of which resemble a bandsaw.

From Slate • Nov. 20, 2023

My fountain pen was always one of my most prized possessions; I valued it highly, especially because it had a thick nib, and I can only write neatly with thick nibs.

From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank