snout

American  

[snout] / snaʊt /

noun

1. the part of an animal's head projecting forward and containing the nose and jaws; muzzle.

2. Entomology. an anterior prolongation of the head bearing the mouth parts, as in snout beetles.

3. anything that resembles or suggests an animal's snout in shape, function, etc.

4. a nozzle or spout.

5. a person's nose, especially when large or prominent.

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snout British  

/ snaʊt /

noun

1. the part of the head of a vertebrate, esp a mammal, consisting of the nose, jaws, and surrounding region, esp when elongated

2. the corresponding part of the head of such insects as weevils

3. anything projecting like a snout, such as a nozzle or the lower end of a glacier

4. slang a person's nose

5. Also called: snout moth.  a brownish noctuid moth, Hypena proboscidalis, that frequents nettles: named from the palps that project prominently from the head at rest

6. slang a cigarette or tobacco

7. slang an informer

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Other Word Forms

• snouted adjective
• snoutless adjective
• snoutlike adjective
• unsnouted adjective

Etymology

Origin of snout

1175–1225; Middle English snute; cognate with Dutch snuite, German Schnauze

Explanation

An animal's long, protruding nose is often called a snout. The tricky part, though, is that not all long animal noses are called snouts. An elephant has a very long nose, but we don't call it a snout, we call it a trunk. A horse's nose is rarely referred to as a snout, because it's really their whole face that's long. Birds have beaks. Most dogs have a snout, except for pugs and boxers and other dogs with smashed-in faces. Bears have snouts, as do rats. Do yourself a favor, though, and never tell a person that they have a snout, no matter how large their nose is. Believe it or not, snout may actually be a cousin of the word snot: that should help you remember it!

Example Sentences

Preserved in nearly perfect three-dimensional detail, the skeleton includes a skull with a huge eye socket and an elongated, sword-like snout.

From Science Daily • Feb. 24, 2026

Last week we sat on an examining-room floor as Doc shivered under blankets, his snout on my leg and eyes moving between Karen and me as if he was drinking us in while he could.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 14, 2026

"Xiphodracon translates to sword-like dragon and that is in reference to that very long, sword-like snout, but also the fact that ichthyosaurs have been referred to as sea dragons for about 200 years."

From BBC • Oct. 9, 2025

The canine’s snout sliced determinedly through the water as it dog-paddled along, before eventually turning around and swimming back to Angel Island.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 11, 2025

I lift my snout, taste the air—my nose smells nothing but smoke and ash.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

Related Words

• beak
• nose
• trunk