nostril

[nos-truhl]

noun

1. either of the two external openings of the nose.

nostril

/ ˈnɒstrɪl /

noun

1. either of the two external openings of the nose

Word History and Origins

Origin of nostril¹

before 1000; Middle English nostrill, Old English nosterl, variant of nosthyrl, equivalent to nos ( u ) nose + thyrel hole; thirl

Word History and Origins

Origin of nostril¹

Old English nosthyrl, from nosu _nose + thyrel hole

Example Sentences

She wears layers of clothes and a bandana around her face to protect herself from chemicals on the plants that she says burned her nostrils as she breathed.

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The thick scent of soil fills my nostrils, and I imagine lava bubbling up to my heart.

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Together they gazed upon the dead tiger, with its ferocious teeth and flaring nostrils.

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The Cleveland Clinic describes this as a hole in the tissue that separates your nostrils.

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A detail of the horse’s nostril on Kara Walker’s reimagined Stonewall Jackson sculpture.

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