follow your nose

Meanings

1. 1phraseidiominformalfigurative

   To find your way by going straight ahead, or by using your senses or instinct instead of a map or plan.

   Grammar: The possessive changes: follow her nose, follow our noses.

   Patterns

   • follow your nose to somewhere
   • just follow your nose

   Just follow your nose and you will reach the market.

   We had no map, so we followed our noses through the old town.

   She followed her nose when choosing the project, trusting her instincts.

2. 2phraseidiominformal

   To go toward something by its smell.

   Grammar: Literal use with smells: follow your nose to the bakery.

   Patterns

   • follow your nose to something

   Follow your nose and you will find the bakery.

   The kids followed their noses to the kitchen where cookies were baking.

Word forms

Common combinations

just follow your nose

Just follow your nose and you will see it.

follow your nose to the kitchen

We followed our noses to the kitchen.

follow your nose through the city

They followed their noses through the city.

let your nose lead

Let your nose lead you to the best restaurant.

Synonyms and how they differ

go straight ahead

Go straight ahead is plain direction-giving, whereas follow your nose is casual and a little playful.

trust your instincts

Trust your instincts only covers the decision-making sense, not directions or smell.

play it by ear

Play it by ear means improvising a plan, not using the nose to find a path.

go with the flow

Go with the flow means accepting events calmly, not navigating.

Opposites

Word family

nose noun

the part of the face used for smelling

follow verb

to go after or along

nosy adjective

too curious about other people's business

Commonly confused: follow your nose or poke your nose into?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “follow your nose”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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