nose around

phrasal verb

nosed around; nosing around; noses around
: to search for something (such as private or hidden information) in usually a quiet or secret way
She caught him nosing around in her papers/office.
The police nosed around the property for a while, but they didn't find anything.

Examples of nose around in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Wilbur used his snout like the mini-trunk of an elephant, always nosing around, sticking his frizzy pink nozzle into your side for stroking, sniffing out anything and everything. Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2025 As the bodies pile up, Honey keeps nosing around. Richard Brody, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2025 Naturally, Charlie begins nosing around with the encouragement of her new friend, Alex (Patti Harrison), and discovers there’s more to the sweaty gym than lets on. Matt Minton, Variety, 26 June 2025 By the time the superhero movie bonanza began, no one in this business held their noses around a gold mine any longer. Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 4 June 2025 Tabloid reporters and true-crime enthusiasts nosed around the yard where the police had gathered to call out to Sheila. Heidi Blake, The New Yorker, 29 July 2024 That is, until a true-crime podcaster comes nosing around. Kathryn Shattuck, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2024 Doctors usually repair the lip and nose around 3 to 6 months, close the palate around 9 to 18 months and then wait to do a bone graft until children are about 5 to 11 years old, though there is debate about when in that age range is best. Megan Rose, ProPublica, 6 Mar. 2024 Would Rory and Lorelai, devoted high-culture haters who prefer ordering pizza and mainlining Cop Rock to nosing around museums, ever be caught dead here? Emma Specter, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2023

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Nose around.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nose%20around. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!