a slight, casual, or superficial knowledge (of a subject or a person)
See full dictionary entry for nod
nodding acquaintance in American English
1.
a slight, not intimate, acquaintance with a person or thing
2.
a person whom one knows slightly
nodding acquaintance in American English
noun
1.
a slight, incomplete, or superficial knowledge (of something or someone)
He had only a nodding acquaintance with Italian and didn't trust it to get him throughthe tour. Although we were neighbors for several years, we had only a nodding acquaintance
2.
a person with whom one is only slightly acquainted
I don't really know what he's like--he's only a nodding acquaintance
Word origin
[1860–65]
Examples of 'nodding acquaintance' in a sentence
nodding acquaintance
It's not even on nodding acquaintance with fast.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Artistic standards and market prices often have only a nodding acquaintance, and the judgment of history is never predictable.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
But as yet any meaningful advice has not been forthcoming and the pair remain no more than respectful nodding acquaintances.