to see past the end of one's nose
- idiom
- Informal
:
ver más allá de lo inmediato
- Sometimes, a person we love, through no fault of his own, can't see past the end of his nose.
Examples
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To make wise decisions, leaders must see past the end of their noses and consider the bigger picture.
-
They cannot see past the end of their noses.
Blog text (30) -
In order to succeed in business, you must learn to see past the end of your nose and think long-term.
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If we only focus on immediate rewards, we won't see past the end of our noses and miss out on bigger opportunities.
Synonyms
14
4.3
Think about how important something is compared to other things
To notice small important details while keeping the whole situation in mind
Antonyms
- Informal
1
8.3
Giving too much attention to small details that you lose sight of the main goal
How Far-Sighted
106
3.4
- Informal
- Informal
5
5.8
2
5.9
2
7.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
see + past + the + end + of + one's + nose
The components ('see', 'past', 'end', 'nose') create a clear spatial image of looking beyond the immediate vicinity; that spatial image is metaphorically extended to mean considering matters beyond one's immediate concerns. A B1 learner who knows the words could often infer the general idea, but the figurative mapping from literal sight to abstract perspective is not purely compositional and depends on pragmatic/metaphorical interpretation, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
See past the end of one's nose comes from the simple picture of someone standing so close that their nose hides what is ahead. So, it means 'to look beyond your own small, immediate worries' and notice the bigger picture.