nosepin

English

Indian woman wearing a nosepin

Australian aboriginal nosepin

Etymology

nose +‎ pin

Noun

nosepin (plural nosepins)

1. Any of various decorative ornaments that are worn at the end of the nose.
   • 1953, Nationalmuseets skrifter: Etnografisk række - Issue 6, page 69:

     The nosepin was worn by both sexes, the septum of the nose being pierced shortly after birth, at least as far as the girls were concerned; but probably the same applied to the boys.

   • 1992, Kalima Rose, Where Women Are Leaders: The SEWA Movement in India, →ISBN, page 58:

     In all my life, I have never worn a gold earring or nosepin.

   • 1996, Ravi Shankar -, The Scream of the Dragonflies: And Other Stories, page 218:

     And I can see you, my elfin beloved, the stars are like your nosepin.

   • 2013, Bengt Danielsson, From Raft to Raft: An Incredible Voyage from Tahiti to Chile and Back, →ISBN:

     While they were trying to get their bearings, a party of naked savages with nosepins and sharppointed spears emerged from the belt of mangroves and gazed at them hungrily.

2. A removable pin that attaches to the nose or tip of a device.
   • 1959, Welding Journal - Volume 38, Part 2, page 1094:

     The satellite, which is the payload, is fastened to the nosepin of the third-stage rocket motor.

   • 1975, Jury Verdicts Weekly - Volume 19, page 4:

     Plaintiffs contended that on the night of the subject accident the decedent unhooked the yardhorse from a trailer and had parked it 10 feet in front of the trailer to drop a nosepin on the trailer; that after the decedent left the yardgoat- and while he was attempting to lower the nosepin, the yardgoat, which apparently had been in neutral, silently engaged into reverse, moved back and crushed the decedent under the trailer.

   • 1975, Jury Verdicts Weekly - Volume 19, page 4:

     Plaintiffs contended that on the night of the subject accident the decedent unhooked the yardhorse from a trailer and had parked it 10 feet in front of the trailer to drop a nosepin on the trailer; that after the decedent left the yardgoat- and while he was attempting to lower the nosepin, the yardgoat, which apparently had been in neutral, silently engaged into reverse, moved back and crushed the decedent under the trailer.

   • 1981, Gayle Rivers, James Hudson, The Teheran contract, page 203:

     We got a bearing indicated on the northern nosepin of the aircraft.

Anagrams

• pension