pince-nez
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pince-nez
1875–80; < French: literally, (it) pinches (the) nose
Explanation
If your costume for the school play includes wearing pince-nez, never fear: all you need is a small pair of spectacles that clip on your nose. The most fun about this word, from French for "pinch nose," is pronouncing it in a highly affected way. It denotes a pair of eyeglasses without earpieces that get their grip by spring action on the schnozzle. You're most likely to come across someone wearing pince-nez in an old novel, since they were at the height of their popularity in the nineteenth century.
Vocabulary lists containing pince-nez
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
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I, Robot
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All Quiet on the Western Front
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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.
Gamache does not solve crimes by adjusting his pince-nez and issuing a deduction.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 19, 2022
Improbably bedecked in a bow tie, pince-nez glasses and a mailman’s hat, he held a pickle like a cigar and cracked wise in a voice borrowed from Groucho Marx.
From New York Times ● May 21, 2022
She was fifty, more than twice his age, but they were of similar stature, and would have stood nearly eye to eye, with Goldman looking at Hoover through her pince-nez.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 4, 2019
Roosevelt, known for his gigantic grin, bushy mustache, and pince-nez glasses, served as president from 1901 to 1909.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 18, 2018
The Widow Ashton removed her pince-nez to wipe the lenses, for they had grown foggy from all the moisture.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
