Meaning & use
wrinkle nose
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Meanings
phraseintransitive
to move the muscles of your nose so that small lines appear on it, usually to show dislike or disgust
Grammar: No object: you wrinkle your nose, not wrinkle something. Often followed by at: wrinkle your nose at a smell.
Patterns
- wrinkle your nose
- wrinkle your nose at something
She wrinkled her nose at the smell of the old milk.
He wrinkled his nose when he saw the dirty dishes in the sink.
The baby wrinkled her nose and turned her head away from the spoon.
phraseintransitive
to make a small fold or line appear on the nose, often from strong emotion or concentration
Grammar: No object; the subject is usually a person or an animal. This sense is more about the physical movement than the feeling behind it.
Patterns
- wrinkle your nose
- wrinkle your nose in concentration
She wrinkled her nose in concentration as she tried to thread the needle.
The dog wrinkled its nose and sniffed the air.
He wrinkled his nose in disgust at the terrible joke.
Word forms
| third person singular | wrinkles nose |
|---|---|
| past tense | wrinkled nose |
| past participle | wrinkled nose |
| -ing form | wrinkling nose |
Common combinations
- wrinkle your nose at something
- She wrinkled her nose at the strong perfume.
- wrinkle your nose in disgust
- He wrinkled his nose in disgust when he tasted the bitter medicine.
- wrinkle your nose in concentration
- The student wrinkled her nose in concentration while solving the math problem.
- wrinkle your nose slightly
- He wrinkled his nose slightly at the strange smell.
Synonyms and how they differ
- scrunch up your nose
- Means almost the same but suggests a tighter, more scrunched movement; often used for a cute or playful expression.
- turn up your nose
- Means to show dislike or reject something because you think it is not good enough; it is more about attitude than the physical nose movement.
Word family
- wrinkle noun
- a small line or fold on skin or cloth
- wrinkled adjective
- having wrinkles; not smooth
Commonly confused: wrinkle nose or nose wrinkle?
wrinkle nose vs nose wrinkle
This is the noun form: a wrinkle on the nose. The verb phrase is "wrinkle nose" (or "wrinkle your nose").
Practice
She ______ her nose at the terrible smell coming from the kitchen.
Choose one answer.
The past tense "wrinkled" fits because the sentence describes a completed action in the past. "Wrinkling" would need a helping verb like "was"; "wrinkles" is present tense and does not match the past time; "wrinkle" is the base form and cannot stand alone here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “wrinkle nose”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.