Pinched
Consider the following sentence:
"The traveller grinned and snickered as he pinched his nose."
Does "to pinch one's nose" mean the same as "to hold one's nose"?
Top answer
Christine Christie Does "to pinch one's nose" mean the same as "to hold one's nose"? No. 'pinching' the nose is done at the bridge of the nose and is typically an indication of concentration or intense focus.
- Christine Christie Does "to pinch one's nose" mean the same as "to hold one's nose"?
- No.
- 'pinching' the nose is done at the bridge of the nose and is typically an indication of concentration or intense focus.
- To hold one's nose is a gesture that closes the nostrils and typically means that one is trying to minimize an unpleasant odor.
- 'hold one's nose' can also be used idiomatically (without actually touching the nose) to indicate that one has an unpleasant task to perform.
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Christine ChristieDoes "to pinch one's nose" mean the same as "to hold one's nose"?
No. 'pinching' the nose is done at the bridge of the nose and is typically an indication of concentration or intense focus. To hold one's nose is a gesture that closes the nostrils and typically means that one is trying to minimize an unpleasant odor. 'hold one's nose' can a
0Christine ChristieDoes "to pinch one's nose" mean the same as "to hold one's nose"?
It doesn't sound to me like it's the same.
I'm guessing that "pinched his nose" might mean the traveller was trying to prevent himself from bursting out in laughter. More context might help us to interpret the situation more accurately.
To keep his laughter i
0I remember running into that when I was a kid reading older stuff. I always thought it meant to close the nostrils by squeezing them between thumb and forefinger, same as "hold one's nose". I looked up "pinch" in the OED just now, and it is silent on the subject. It would help to know what it is from and to see the surrounding text. All I can say is that nobody I know would say that oth
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