nosy

See also: носы

English

Alternative forms

• nosey

Etymology

From nose +‎ -y.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈnəʊziː/
• enPR: nō'-zē, IPA^(key): /ˈnoʊzi/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

nosy (comparative more nosy, superlative most nosy)

1. Prying, inquisitive or curious in other’s affairs; tending to snoop or meddle.

   They built tall fences, yet the nosy neighbors always seemed to know everything about them.

2. Having a large or elongated nose.
   • 1962, Paul Engle, Golden Child, page 25:

     "Look at you, a handsome man of thirty, with thick brown hair and a nosy nose and enormous feet and hands that can drive a team of horses or a yoke of oxen or," she hesitated in a brief shyness, and then went on, "a loving wife."

   • 1971, William Cooper, You want the right frame of reference, page 22:

     She had the same sort of handsome, square-cut features as Timothy, with the difference that her nose was small and short — it was obvious that Timothy got his thick dark hair, his brown eyes and his nosy nose from his father, that vigorous impresario who had died suddenly of a a heart-attack, his first, two years before the War began.

   • 1982, Art Journal - Volumes 42-43, page 322:

     The problem is particularly acute in caricature when a variety of divergent features is forced into a precarious union, when a "nosy" nose is trying to get along with a hesitant mouth and vigilant eyebrows.

   • 2005, R. G. Crouch, The Coat: The Origin and Times of Doggett's Famous Wager, page 99:

     Nosy in his looks by the large hooked proboscis, which dominated his face, as well as by character, Ebenezer wanted, perhaps even needed, to know everyone's business.

Synonyms

• interfering
• kibitzing
• meddlesome

Translations

prying, inquisitive or curious in other’s affairs; tending to snoop or meddle

• Bulgarian: любопитен (bg) (ljubopiten)
• Catalan: dotor (ca)
• Cebuano: ukiton, maukit-ukiton
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 多管閒事／多管闲事 (zh) (duōguǎnxiánshì), 多管闲事 (zh) (duōguǎnxiánshì)

• Cornish: tronek, tron-droghya
• Czech: vlezlý
• Dutch: nieuwsgierig (nl), curieus (nl)
• Esperanto: maldiskreta
• Finnish: uteleva (fi)
• French: fouineur (fr) m, fureteur (fr) m, curieux (fr) m
• Galician: entremetido
• German: neugierig (de), topfguckerisch
• Hungarian: tolakodó (hu), indiszkrét (hu), kotnyeles (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hutterisch: niesheerich
• Icelandic: forvitinn
• Italian: ficcanaso (it)
• Japanese: おせっかいな (osekkai na)
• Maori: mahira, ihu kurī, māhirahira
• Persian: فضول (fa) (fozul)
• Portuguese: intrometido (pt), cusco (pt), metediço (pt)
• Russian: любопы́тный (ru) (ljubopýtnyj)
• Spanish: chismoso (es) m, metiche, metido (es) m, metijón m, metomentodo (es), entremetido (es) m, cotilla (es)
• Swedish: nyfiken (sv)
• Vietnamese: lắm chuyện (vi), nhiều chuyện (vi), đa sự, đa đoan (vi), thọc mạch
• Welsh: busneslyd (cy)

Noun

nosy (plural nosies)

1. (UK, slang) A look at something to satisfy one's curiosity.

   I might wander down to the construction site for a nosy at what they're building.

Anagrams

• Sony, Yons, noys, sony, syno, syon

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Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈnosɪ]

Noun

nosy

1. nominative/accusative/vocative/instrumental plural of nos

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Malagasy

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *nusa. Compare Malay nusa.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

nosy

1. island (area of land completely surrounded by water)

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Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈnɔ.sɨ/

Noun

nosy m inan

1. nominative/accusative/vocative plural of nos