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snout

Etymology and origin of the English word snout

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /snaʊt/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English snute,[2][3][4][5][6] probably from an unrecorded Old English word[2][4] or borrowed from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch snūte (“snout”);[3][4] it is related to Dutch snuit and German Schnauze.[3][4][5][6] Barnhart connects it with Old English gesnot “mucus”, the source of snot.[3] It belongs to a group of Germanic sn- words, probably imitative, relating to the nose, such as snore, sneeze and snuff.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The trunk of an elephant (c. 1220);[7][3] by about 1225 also a person's nose, used derisively.[3]

Semantic evolution

By about 1300 the word meant the projecting nose and jaws of an animal such as a pig or dog,[7][3][4] and it was used contemptuously of a large human nose or face.[7][4] It was extended to things shaped like a snout: a ship's prow (1387), a nozzle (before 1425), a projecting point of land (1536) and the end of a glacier (1841).[7] In British slang snout means tobacco (1885) or a cigarette (1950),[7][1] and in Australian slang to have a snout on someone is to bear them ill will (1941).[7]

Timeline

  • c. 1220 – an elephant's trunk.[7][3]
  • c. 1225 – a person's nose (derisive).[3]
  • c. 1300 – the nose and jaws of an animal.[7][3][4]
  • 1387 – a ship's prow.[7]
  • 1841 – the front of a glacier.[7]
  • 1885 – slang, tobacco.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The projecting nose and jaws of an animal's head, as of a pig; a muzzle.
  2. A similar forward extension of the head in certain insects, such as weevils; a rostrum.
  3. Something shaped like a snout, such as a nozzle, a ship's prow or the end of a glacier.
  4. (informal) A person's nose, especially a large one.
  5. (British slang) Tobacco; a cigarette.

Word family

  • snouted
  • snouty
  • snout beetle
  • snot
  • snore
  • sniff
  • snoop
  • muzzle

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Snout.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/snout. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·