- not in my back yard: a person who objects to the occurrence of something if it will affect him or her or take place in his or her locality
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
NIMBY
(usually nim′bē),USA pronunciation
Nim′by•ism, n.
- not in my backyard: used to express opposition by local citizens to the locating in their neighborhood of a civic project, as a jail, garbage dump, or drug rehabilitation center, that, though needed by the larger community, is considered unsightly, dangerous, or likely to lead to decreased property values.
- 1980–85
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
NIMBY /ˈnɪmbɪ/ n acronym for
'nimby' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):