nosing

verb

Definition of nosingnext
present participle of nose
1
as in sniffing
to become aware of by means of the sense organs in the nose could nose the garbage from across the street

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in interfering
to interest oneself in what is not one's concern a neighbor who likes to nose around in everyone else's business

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in dragging
to move slowly the line to get tickets is just nosing, so we are going to be here for a while

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for nosing
  1. sniffing
  2. interfering
  3. dragging
  4. smelling
  5. messing
  6. crawling
  7. inhaling
  8. poking
Verb
  • In sniffing out the many, many chemical compounds that naked mole rats produce, scientists found that isopropyl myristate was common among queens and queens alone.
    — Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Mondon, a 2025 fifth-round pick, opened team drills with the second-team defense by sniffing out a run along the perimeter.
    — Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of sniffing
Verb
  • Under the law, federal officers are prohibited from interfering in elections.
    — David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 26 Aug. 2026
  • However, according to the report, violence is increasing in museum thefts, with thieves using instruments such as dynamite, guns, and sledgehammers to gain access to treasures and deter employees from interfering.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of interfering
Verb
  • In addition, people are urged to secure to chains to avoid dragging and potential spark and not to toss cigarette butts out of vehicles.
    — Tim Fang, CBS News, 27 Aug. 2026
  • As mentioned previously, Babcock obstinately played a late-career Marleau in significant minutes during his time in Toronto with dragging results.
    — Janson Duench, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of dragging
Verb
  • By the end of the night — or beginning of the day — everyone leaves the bar smelling like cigarettes.
    — Amanda Rosa, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Black could be licorice or blueberries, though a very dark, foul-smelling stool can flag intestine or liver issues.
    — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of smelling
Verb
  • There was something a little therapeutic about messing it up.
    — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 28 June 2026
  • No one can match her depth and passion to get vengeance on Krem of the Yellow Hills for messing with her family — a sentiment Cancers understand.
    — Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026
Definition of messing
Verb
  • An ancient Nazi scientist (Dan Stevens) crawling across a carpet to lick a woman’s stilettoed foot.
    — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Classicist and Roman plumbing expert Ann Olga Koloski-Ostrow suggests that private toilets might have been cut off from the municipal sewers to prevent animals crawling up the pipes and into homes.
    — Andrew Coletti, Popular Science, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of crawling
Verb
  • And in the summer working, caring for the garden, cultivating my plants, my food, inhaling the sun, seeing my skin become brown just as the flowers are also growing their colours, and my beloved garden plants are delivering their brilliant food.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 Aug. 2026
  • More studies are showing the wide-ranging negative health impacts of inhaling wildfire smoke, which is especially toxic when blazes tear through urban areas and burn up household appliances, batteries and chemicals.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of inhaling
Verb
  • Seething at his dad for poking at his body insecurities, the comedian dealt with his emotions like any good millennial — by podcasting about it.
    — Deputy Entertainment, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Wear the fall wardrobe staple layered, like Brinkley did under a cardigan with the lace poking through, or style it on its own when the weather is a little warmer.
    — Mia Huelsbeck, PEOPLE, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of poking
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

nosiness
nosing
nosing out
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Nosing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nosing. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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