nozzle

American  

[noz-uhl] / ˈnɒz əl /

noun

nozzles plural

1. a projecting spout, terminal discharging pipe, or the like, as of a hose or bellows.

2. Slang. the nose.

3. the spout of a teapot.

4. the socket of a candlestick.

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nozzle British  

/ ˈnɒzəl /

noun

1. a projecting pipe or spout from which fluid is discharged

2. Also called: propelling nozzle.  a pipe or duct, esp in a jet engine or rocket, that directs the effluent and accelerates or diffuses the flow to generate thrust

3. a socket, such as the part of a candlestick that holds the candle

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• nozzles
  plural

Etymology

Origin of nozzle

1600–10; earlier nosle; see nose, -le

Explanation

A nozzle is the spout at the end of a hose that water flows through. Any kind of fluid — oil, gasoline — can move through a tube and squirt out of a nozzle, but we usually think of water in a hose, with the nozzle controlling the spray. The root of nozzle is nose, which — if you use a little imagination — describes the shape of most nozzles.

Example Sentences

With crude oil topping $100 a barrel, and the average price of gas in the state approaching $5.50 a gallon, every touch of the nozzle is painful for California drivers.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

Children suck up lamb and rice through a nozzle, like little astronauts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 10, 2025

So depending on the contents, you could have a pump, a squeeze top, spray nozzle, screw top lid or other options.

From BBC • Jul. 28, 2025

The nozzle array can also pick up spheroids in customized patterns, which can then be repeated to create the architecture found in complex tissue.

From Science Daily • Dec. 3, 2024

I ran over to the other letter, dipped the nozzle, flipped the switch, felt the heat steam up through the handle and off the sides of the can, and ignited the first ball.

From "Tradition" by Brendan Kiely

Related Words

• faucet
• spigot