Nice or sympathetic?

Nice is an adjective meaning ‘pleasant’, ‘enjoyable’ or ‘satisfactory’:

• Have a nice trip!
• We had a really nice meal. Thank you.

When we use it to talk about someone, it means ‘kind’, ‘friendly’ or ‘polite’:

• It was really nice of you to call me.
• Tanya’s new boyfriend is so nice.

Sympathetic is an adjective used to describe a person who shows that they understand and care about someone’s suffering or problems, especially by what they say:

• My colleagues were so sympathetic when I was ill.
• As a teacher, you have to be sympathetic to the problems of your students.

warning

We don’t use sympathetic to mean ‘nice’:

• Our new teacher is really nice.
• Not: Our new teacher is really sympathetic.
• His small house was nice and warm.
• Not: His small house was sympathetic and warm.