nose

[nəʊ̯z]

/[nəʊ̯z]/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"nose" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“nose” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,956 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#2,956
frequency rank, English
4
letters
3
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A protuberance on the face housing the nostrils, which are used to breathe or smell.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

nose vs not
50% similar
nose vs now
50% similar
nose vs nov
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for nose
PropertyValue
Headwordnose
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[nəʊ̯z]
Letters4
Frequency rank#2,956
Misspellings tracked3
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “nose” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). nose lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for nose is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [nəʊ̯z]. Corpus data places it at rank #2,956 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 13 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 3 likely wrong-spelling variants for nose, with forms such as "nnose", "nosse", and "nsoe". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "not", "now", "nov", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English nose, from Old English nosu, from Proto-West Germanic *nosu, variant of *nasō, old dual from Proto-Indo-European *néh₂s- ~ *nh₂es- (“nose, nostril”). See also Saterland Frisian Noose, West Frisian noas, Dutch neus, Swedish nos, Norwegian… The correct English form is nose, spelled N-O-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A protuberance on the face housing the nostrils, which are used to breathe or smell.
  2. 2
    A snout, the nose of an animal.
  3. 3
    The tip of an object.
  4. 4
    The bulge on the side of a piece of a jigsaw puzzle, that fits into the hole of its adjacent piece.
  5. 5
    The length of a horse’s nose, used to indicate the distance between horses at the finish of a race, or any very close race.
  6. 6
    A perfumer.
  7. 7
    The sense of smell.
  8. 8
    Bouquet, the smell of something, especially wine.
  9. 9
    The skill in recognising bouquet.
  10. 10
    Skill at finding information.
  11. 11
    The action of nosing, in the sense to snoop
  12. 12
    A downward projection from a cornice.
  13. 13
    An informer.

Etymology

From Middle English nose, from Old English nosu, from Proto-West Germanic *nosu, variant of *nasō, old dual from Proto-Indo-European *néh₂s- ~ *nh₂es- (“nose, nostril”). See also Saterland Frisian Noose, West Frisian noas, Dutch neus, Swedish nos, Norwegian nos (“snout”), Low German Nääs, German Nase, Swedish näsa, Norwegian nese, Danish næse (“nose”); also Latin nāris (“nostril”), nāsus (“nose”), Lithuanian nósis, Russian нос (nos), Sanskrit नासा (nā́sā, “nostrils”).

Synonyms

tabnosebeakbeezerbokoconkhonkerhooternebpeckerproboscisschnozzschnozzleschnozzolaschnozsmellersnecksniffersnitchsnootsnotboxsnouttrunk

This word in other languages

nariz(Español)nez(Français)Nase(Deutsch)focinho(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: nnose,nosse,nsoe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of nose - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

nnose1nosse1nsoe2
Edit distance from "nose"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "nose"?
"nose" is spelled N-O-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is [nəʊ̯z].
What does "nose" mean?
As a noun, "nose" means: A protuberance on the face housing the nostrils, which are used to breathe or smell.
What words are commonly confused with "nose"?
"nose" is commonly confused with "not", "now", "nov". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "nose"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nose" is [nəʊ̯z]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "nose"?
From Middle English nose, from Old English nosu, from Proto-West Germanic *nosu, variant of *nasō, old dual from Proto-Indo-European *néh₂s- ~ *nh₂es- (“nose, nostril”). See also Saterland Frisian Noose, West Frisian noas, Dutch neus, Swedish nos,... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “nose”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is N-O-S-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [nəʊ̯z] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “not” - see the side-by-side comparison. nose vs not
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list