Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To breathe noisily, as through a blocked nose.
- intransitive verb To sniff, especially repeatedly, as a dog.
- intransitive verb To utter with a sound like that produced by snuffling.
- noun The act or sound of snuffling.
- noun The sniffles. Used with the.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A sound made by the passage of air through the nostrils; the audible drawing up of air or of mucus by inhalation, especially in short catches of breath.
- noun plural Troublesome mucous discharge from the nostrils. Also
sniffles . - noun A speaking through the nose, especially with short audible breaths; an affected nasal twang; hence, cant.
- To breathe hard through the nose, or through the nose when obstructed; draw the breath noisily on account of obstructions in the nasal passages; snuff up mucus in the nose by short catches of breath; speak through the nose: sometimes used, especially in the present participle, of affected, canting talk or persons: as, a snuffling fellow.
- To take offense.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb To speak through the nose; to breathe through the nose when it is obstructed, so as to make a broken sound.
- noun The act of snuffing; a sound made by the air passing through the nose when obstructed.
- noun An affected nasal twang; hence, cant; hypocrisy.
- noun colloq. Obstruction of the nose by mucus; nasal catarrh of infants or children.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb intransitive to
sniff with thenose loudly andaudibly - verb intransitive to make something or someone quiet.
- verb intransitive to travel in a car at the pace of a snail.
- verb intransitive to sniff or smell something very loudly; harsh
- noun An act of snuffling; sniffing loudly
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb sniff or smell inquiringly
- noun the act of breathing heavily through the nose (as when the nose is congested)
- verb cry or whine with snuffling
- verb snuff up mucus through the nose
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
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Examples
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He heard a kind of snuffle, then a buffalo just brushed him as it went past.
The Berrybender Narratives Larry McMurtry 2004
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(N.B. -- This ejaculation denotes the kind of snuffle which lent peculiar energy to the dicta of Mr. Culpepper.) "Ring the bell, then, and summon the landlord," said, very pertinently, one of the three disputants upon the character of Wilkes.
The Disowned — Volume 07 Edward Bulwer Lytton Lytton 1838
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(N.B. -- This ejaculation denotes the kind of snuffle which lent peculiar energy to the dicta of Mr. Culpepper.) "Ring the bell, then, and summon the landlord," said, very pertinently, one of the three disputants upon the character of Wilkes.
The Disowned — Complete Edward Bulwer Lytton Lytton 1838
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"loanan" -- what they call a "boreen" in other parts of Ireland -- the other man, who was a bit of a wag, would put his hand to his nose, and make a motion of putting it aside, as if there was not sufficient room for two such organs, and call out with a kind of snuffle: "Pass, Brian!"
The Life Story of an Old Rebel John Denvir
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Again came the snuffle and cough, and outlined between two jagged rocks not a score of feet away he made out the gray head of a wolf.
LOVE OF LIFE 2010
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A cabayo made that stuttering snuffle, and someone laughed, the sound carrying in the night.
Fire The Sky W. Michael Gear 2011
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The intercoms sold to let parents listen in to every snuffle, sob and cry operate in the same frequency band as the wireless networks more and more of us are installing and can generate so much interference that they make them unusable.
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A cabayo made that stuttering snuffle, and someone laughed, the sound carrying in the night.
Fire The Sky W. Michael Gear 2011
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I open up my nostril slits and wetly snuffle the air for the faint stink of friends.
365 tomorrows » 2009 » February : A New Free Flash Fiction SciFi Story Every Day 2009
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He heard a snuffle behind him -- a half-choking gasp or cough.
LOVE OF LIFE 2010
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