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Glite Dictionary
to wrinkle one's nose

to wrinkle one's nose

4 6.0
To move the nose so it makes small lines to show you do not like something
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : arrugar la nariz
  • Dee joined him and peered down, wrinkling his nose, nauseated by the stench.
  • said, wrinkling her nose
  • wrinkled her nose at the thought

Examples

  • "I don't see how people drink this stuff," she said, wrinkling her nose and passing the can to him.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • A vague, stale odor escaped, and she wrinkled her nose.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Ah, I see they did," he said, wrinkling his nose.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • I think it might be a good idea to start with the papers," Ross said, wrinkling his nose.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • "I got out by myself, but I still need to get off world," Gella said, wrinkling her nose.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • "Now, that's what I call a dirty scene!" she said, wrinkling her nose.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • The principal wrinkled his nose at the faint smell of vomit, but I didn't care.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Bandicut wrinkled his nose against the stale beer smell and found an empty booth.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Lynda took it from me and offered it to Curious, who tasted it and then wrinkled his nose, looking disgusted.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • When she tasted the sour lemon, she immediately wrinkled her nose in disgust.

Synonyms

to frown
vsto wrinkle one's nose
160 1.0

To bring the eyebrows together and wrinkle the forehead to show dislike or concentration

expresses the same displeasure but with creases lower on the face
to scowl
vsto wrinkle one's nose
33 4.1

To give an angry look to show you do not like something

shows dislike specifically by creating short creases on the middle of the face
to thumb one's nose at
vsto wrinkle one's nose
  • Informal
8 9.2

To show open disrespect by refusing to follow rules or customs

is a quieter facial sign of disgust rather than a public disrespectful act
to turn up one's nose
vsto wrinkle one's nose
3 7.5

To show you think something is not good enough

shows disgust by making small lines on the middle of the face
to pull a face
vsto wrinkle one's nose
  • Informal
1 5.5

Make a face to show dislike or discomfort

is a specific small facial sign that shows disgust rather than general expression

How Disgusted

to sneer
39 5.6
to wrinkle one's nose
4 6.0
to grimace
29 4.4

Surface Forms

wrinkle one's nose infinitive
wrinkled one's nose past
wrinkled one's nose past participle
wrinkling one's nose present participle
wrinkles one's nose third person singular

Morphology

wrinkle + one's + nose

The meaning is directly and transparently derived from combining 'wrinkle' (to make creases) with 'one's nose' (the facial organ), so a B1 learner who knows the words can infer 'make lines on the nose' and the associated facial expression. This verb + body-part construction is common and cross-linguistically obvious as a gesture of disgust or disapproval, making the MWE immediately comprehensible.

Etymology

Wrinkle one's nose comes from the way the nose makes a small wrinkle when you smell something bad or do not like something. So, it means 'to show disgust or disapproval'.