sniffle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
sniffles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sniffled,
past participle, past
-
sniffling
present participle
noun
-
sniffles
plural
-
an act or sound of sniffling.
-
(the) sniffles, a condition, as a cold, marked by sniffling.
This draft is giving me the sniffles.
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
snifflesimple
-
snifflessimple
-
have sniffledperfect
-
has sniffledperfect
-
am snifflingprogressive
-
are snifflingprogressive
-
is snifflingprogressive
-
have been snifflingperfect progressive
-
has been snifflingperfect progressive
Past
-
sniffledsimple
-
had sniffledperfect
-
was snifflingprogressive
-
were snifflingprogressive
-
had been snifflingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sniffle
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Getting here now — typing away while I sniffle with a cold, a life I wouldn’t change for the world — required carefully deflating a rapidly overblown ego.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026
The movie has no time to mine the psychology underneath their clash, let alone summon a sniffle for the other pitiful characters who die during this escapade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
She said it began with a "sniffle and a little cough" and he died just a week later.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2023
It’s a sniffle, a tickle in the throat and a headache.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 30, 2022
I throw in a sniffle and a couple fake coughs.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
It made parents more wary of illness, so when children get sniffles, they want to keep them off.
From BBC ● May 5, 2025
“Be prepared for the possibility that those sniffles or symptoms after coming back will be COVID.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2024
We tend to think of the disease as a respiratory problem, given all the coughs and sniffles it produces, but it’s really more of a vascular disease, impacting any system that relies on blood vessels.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2024
To deliver sentiment, the film instead relies on a score that sniffles as though a racehorse is being taken out to get shot.
From New York Times ● Jun. 20, 2024
I started to cry—not just a flurry of sniffles but such huge sobs I had to throw myself on my bunk and bury my head in my pillow.
From "Homesick" by Jean Fritz
He sniffled as the postgame news conference was about to begin.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 26, 2023
Asked by a prosecutor to identify Weinstein in the courtroom, Siebel Newsom covered her face in her hands, sniffled and wiped away tears before pointing to him at the defense table.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 14, 2022
She sniffled and paused frequently to contain emotions that threatened to derail her intentions.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 8, 2022
Subsequent jurors held back tears, or sniffled, their faces distraught.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 11, 2022
She sniffled and nodded, but Papa wasn’t taking no sniffling and nodding.
From "P.S. Be Eleven" by Rita Williams-Garcia
An emotional Flynn was seen in court at times sniffling and wiping tears from his eyes.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
Lying would be obvious if you’re not coughing, sniffling or sneezing, and insulting to the other person.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 4, 2025
“I don’t really know where you go from here,” Cain said, sniffling.
From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2025
José stared at the ground, sniffling, pulling up his shirt to wipe away tears.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2025
That winter everybody had colds and went around sniffling most of the time.
From "My Brother Sam is Dead" by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
