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Glite Dictionary
to powder one's nose

to powder one's nose

7 8.2
To go to the restroom to fix makeup or hair as a polite excuse
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : retocarse
  • "Excuse me, gals, I need to powder my nose," she said, slipping away from the table.
  • go to powder my nose
  • just going to powder my nose
  • need to powder my nose

Examples

Synonyms

to powder
vsto powder one's nose
29 3.8

To put a fine dry substance on skin, hair or food

means to go to the restroom to touch up makeup or freshen appearance

Antonyms

to stay put
  • Informal
133 2.0

Remain in the same place without moving

Surface Forms

powder one's nose infinitive
powdered one's nose past
powdered one's nose past participle
powdering one's nose present participle
powders one's nose third person singular

Morphology

powder + one's + nose

The components 'powder' and 'nose' suggest a literal grooming action (applying powder), so learners will likely infer a cosmetic or grooming sense, but the conventionalized euphemistic meaning 'to go to the restroom' is not fully predictable from the parts alone. Because the expression is a polite euphemism that extends the literal action to mean leaving briefly (usually to freshen up), it is only partially transparent to a B1 learner who knows the words.

Etymology

Powder one's nose comes from the old habit of women quietly going away to touch up their makeup, often putting powder on the face or nose for a moment before returning to a party. That's why today it is a polite way to say 'to go to the restroom'.