Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

nuzzle

/ˈnʌz(ə)l/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.25 in modern English

Syllables
nuz-zle
IPA
/ˈnʌz(ə)l/
24
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To push or thrust (the nose or snout, face or muzzle, or head, or an object) against or into something.

Transitive verb

verb

To rub or touch (someone or something) with the nose, face, etc., or an object.

Transitive verb

verb

Chiefly of an animal: to dig (something, especially food) out of the ground using the nose or snout; to root.

Transitive verb

verb

Often followed by in or into: to press or push the nose or snout, mouth, face, etc., against or into someone or something; to touch someone or something with the nose or snout, etc.

Intransitive verb

verb

Chiefly of an animal: to push the nose or snout into the ground to dig for something, especially food; to root, to rootle.

Intransitive verb

verb

Followed by down: to settle or lie comfortably and snugly in a bed, nest, etc.; to nestle.

Intransitive verb

verb

Chiefly followed by up or with: to press affectionately against someone or something; to nestle, to snuggle.

Intransitive verb

verb

To come into close contact with someone or something.

Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

Etymology

The verb is derived from Middle English noselen (“to bend down”); further etymology uncertain, possibly: * a back-formation from noseling, noselyng (“on the back, supine; with the face downward, prone”, adverb), from nose (“nose”) (from Old English nosu, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *néh₂s (“nose”)) + -ling, -lyng (suffix forming adverbs denoting direction, manner, or position); or * from nose (see above) + -el, -elen (diminutive or frequentative suffix) (in which case the English word is, by surface analysis, nose + -le (frequentative suffix)). Etymology 1, verb sense 2.3 (“to settle or lie comfortably and snugly”) is possibly influenced by nestle or nursle (frequentative of nurse). The noun is derived from the verb. Compare nozzle.

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈnʌz(ə)l/
  • British English: /ˈnʌzl̩/

Usage

Inflected Forms

nuzzles (present, singular) nuzzling (participle, present) nuzzled (participle, past) nuzzled (past) no-table-tags (table tags) glossary (inflection template) nuzzled (first person, past) nuzzlest (archaic, present) nuzzled (past, second person) nuzzledst (archaic, past) nuzzleth (archaic, present) nuzzled (past, singular)

Derived Forms

nuzzler nuzzling nuzzly snoozle snuzzle

Frequently Paired Words

nursle

Synonyms

snuzzle nose cuddle snuggle nestle nest draw close

Rhymes With

puzzle muzzle guzzle uzzle confuzzle fuzzle buzzle befuzzle

Questions

How do you pronounce nuzzle?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈnʌz(ə)l/.
What does nuzzle mean?
To push or thrust (the nose or snout, face or muzzle, or head, or an object) against or into something.
Where does nuzzle come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce nuzzle

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “nuzzle”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈnʌz(ə)l/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “nuzzle”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “nuzzle” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.