noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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Received-Pronunciation:/ˈneɪkə/
General-American:/ˈneɪkəɹ/
UK:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -eɪkə(ɹ)
1
noun
Meaning 1
A shellfish which contains mother-of-pearl.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, obsolete, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A pearly substance made mainly of stacked layers of aragonite and organic matter which lines the interior of many shells; mother-of-pearl.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
the iridescent internal layer of a mollusk shell
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: mother-of-pearl
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: shell
History
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French nacre, from Medieval Latin nacchara, ultimately derived from Arabic نَقَّارَة (naqqāra). Doublet of nagara, nagada, naqareh, and naker. Also present in nacarat.