copper nose
- noun
- /ˈkɑːpər noʊz/
- The doctor explained that a copper nose can result from broken blood vessels in the skin.
Examples
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His copper nose was a telltale sign of years of heavy drinking.
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Portraits from the era sometimes depicted men with a noticeable copper nose.
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His copper nose was a clear sign of his drinking habits.
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Many people noticed her copper nose after the party.
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His copper nose was a telltale sign of years of heavy drinking.
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The doctor explained that a copper nose can result from broken blood vessels in the skin.
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Many people noticed her copper nose after the party.
Synonyms
1
9.9
A large red round nose with small red lines from blood vessels
1
9.9
A large red nose with visible small blood vessels often caused by heavy drinking
A red, swollen nose with small red veins, often linked to heavy drinking
A red, swollen nose with small veins you can see after long heavy drinking
A nose that becomes large and red with visible veins from long heavy drinking
An enlarged red nose with visible blood vessels that often comes from heavy drinking
Surface Forms
Morphology
The basic descriptive sense — a nose that is coppery or reddish — follows directly from combining 'copper' (a reddish metal/color) with 'nose', so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the surface colour/appearance. However, the conventional association with enlarged vessels and excessive alcohol consumption is a cultural/pragmatic extension not fully predictable from the constituents, so the expression is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Copper nose may come from comparing a red, swollen nose to the warm, reddish metal copper. Old pictures and doctors often saw this red, swollen look on people with 'heavy drinking', so the name came to mean a nose changed by alcohol.