Definition of On the nose

1. Adjective. Being precise with regard to a prescribed or specified criterion. "The prediction for snow was right on the button"

Exact synonyms: On The Button
Similar to: Precise

2. Adverb. Just as it should be. "`Precisely, my lord,' he said"
Exact synonyms: Exactly, On The Button, On The Dot, Precisely

Definition of On the nose

1. Adjective. (&lit on nose) ¹

2. Adjective. (idiomatic) Exact; precise; appropriate. ¹

3. Adjective. (slang Australia) Smelly, malodorous; ''often used figuratively''. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Lexicographical Neighbors of On The Nose

on the job(p)
on the ladder
on the lam
on the latch
on the level
on the line
on the lookout
on the loose
on the loose(p)
on the make
on the market
on the mend
on the money
on the move
on the nail
on the nose (current term)
on the offensive(p)
on the one hand
on the other hand
on the outs
on the pill
on the plus side
on the point of
on the prowl
on the qt
on the qui vive
on the quiet(p)
on the radar

Literary usage of On the nose

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The American Journal of the Medical Sciences by Southern Society for Clinical Investigation (U.S.) (1908)
"Wounds of the Optic Nerve in Operations on the Nose.—ONODI (Arch, internal, de laryng., ... on the Nose ..."

2. The British Journal of Dermatology by British Association of Dermatology (1906)
"Discoid type on the nose and lips. Small patch on the mucous membrane inside the right nostril. ... Very small spot on the nose and lobule of each ear. ..."

3. The American Journal of Psychology by Granville Stanley Hall, Edward Bradford Titchener (1910)
"Others put clothespins on the nose to make it pointed. Again others want a pug nose and hold it in that position for long periods at a time. ..."

4. The Writings in Prose and Verse of Rudyard Kipling by Rudyard Kipling (1899)
"'E steps back,— we was in-fightin' then: ' Come on when you're ready,' 'e sez; and when I had my wind I come on again, an' I got 'im one on the nose that ..."

5. The Lancet (1842)
"... when sufficiently hard, the mould was removed, baked, and well seasoned with oil ; when thus prepared it was replaced on the nose, and secured by the ..."

6. Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical by Henry Gray, Timothy Holmes (1883)
"The close connection of the skin to the cartilages admits of no stretching : hence the acute pain felt in erysipelas and boils on the nose. ..."

Other Resources:

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