nose

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(gen. pl. nefja), n.

1) the bone of the nose, nasal bone, opp. to ‘nasir’ (hann rak hnefana á nasir mér ok braut í mér nefit);

2) the nose (náit er nef augum);

3) beak, bill (of a bird);

4) head, person; um alla Sváþjóð guldu menn Óðni skatt, penning fyrir nef hvert, a penny per head.

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n., gen. pl. nefja, dat. nefjum; [A. S. nebbe; Engl. neb]:—the nose, prop. the beak, bone of the nose, opp. to nasar (nös, q. v.), Grág. ii. 11; liðr á nefi, Ld. 272; þeir hafa hvárki nef né nasar, ‘neb nor nose,’ i. e. neither lower part nor cartilage, Stj. 79; hann rak hnefann á nasir mér ok braut í mér nefit, Fas. iii. 392; kom á nasir þeim ok brotnaði í honum nefit, Fms. iii. 186; gnúa nefit, Orkn. 394, passim: also in the phrases, stinga nefi í feld, to hide the nose (face) in one’s cloak, from dismay, Fms. x. 401; cp. stinga nösum í felda, Sighvat; stinga saman nefjum, to put noses together = lay heads together, i. e. discuss closely, ironic., Grett. (in a verse); kveða, tala í nef, to talk through the nose, Skálda 162; taka í nefið, to snuff up; sjúga upp í nefit, to suck up through the nose; of nær nefi kvað karl …, too near the nose, quoth the carle, when he was hit in the eye, Fms. vii. 288; náit er nef augum, the neb is near akin to the eye, Nj., cp. Fms. iii. 188; draga bust ór nefi einum, see burst.

2. as a law term in regard to tax, dues, poll (cp. the English phrase ‘to count noses’); um alla Svíþjóð guldu menn Óðni skatt, penning fyrir nef hvert, Yngl. S. ch. 8; hefir þú nú gört fyrir þitt nef þangat út, i. e. thou hast done thy share, Fbr. 33; gjalda eyri fyrir net hvert, to pay a ‘nose-tax’ of an ounce, poll-tax, Lv. 89; penning fyrir nef hvert, Hkr. ii. 231; skal göra mann út at sjaunda nefi, N. G. L. i. 97; ertug fyrir sex tigu nefja innan laga várra, 7; skutilsveinar til þriggja nefja ok hverr húskarl til tveggja nefja, H. E. i. 420; yrkja níðvísu fyrir nef hvert er á var landinu, Hkr. i. 227; skal búandi hverr augljós nef hafa af bryggju-sporði á skoru-kefli fyrir ármann, i. e. every franklin has to shew up the poll on a score-roll before the king’s officer, N. G. L. i. 200.

3. the neb, beak, bill, of birds, Fms. viii. 10; nefin ok klærnar, Nj. 272, Stj. 90; fugls-nef, uglu-nef, arnar-nef, hrafns-nef, Sdm. passim; also hrúts-nef, a ram’s nose, 1812. 66: the saying, lítið er nef várt en breiðar fjaðrir, Bs. i. 676, of high aspirations and weak efforts, see fjöðr: of things, klappar-nef, a jutting rock; skogar-nef, q. v.; steðja nef, the nose (small end) of a stithy; keips-nef, a thole, a rowlock pin: cp. the riddle or pun, liggr á grúfu og horfir upp nef—á ausu ! of the hook on a ladle’s handle.

II. as a nickname, Gísl.; = Nosey, cp. Lat. Naso.

COMPDS: nefbjörg, nefdreyri, neffölr, nefgildi, nefglita, neflangr, neflauss, neflítill, nefljótr, nefmikill, nefmæltr.

(gen. nasar, pl. nasar and nasir), f. nostril, esp. pl. nostrils, nose;

bregða e-u fyrir nasar e-m, to put it before one’s nose;

draga nasir at e-u, to snuff, smell at a thing;

stinga nösum niðr, to fall upon one’s face, bite the dust;

lúka nösum, to shut the nostrils, die.

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f., pl. nasar, mod. nasir; an s has been dropped, as may be seen from snös, berg-snös (q. v.), as also from Dan. snuse = to smell; [cp. Engl. nose; Germ. nase; Lat. nasus and nares]:—the nostrils, the nose as the organ of smelling, also of the front of the nose; nasar þessa líkams skyldu vera erchidjáknar, þeir skyldu þefja ok ilma allan sætleik, Anecd.; opnar eru nasarnar, Nj. 154; eldar brenna ór augum hans ok nösum, Edda 41; svá at blóð hrjóti ór munni eðr nösum, Grág. ii. 11; bregða e-u fyrir nasar e-m, to put it before one’s nose, Korm. 34; setja hnefa á nasar e-m, Ld. 36; höggit kom á nasir honum ok brotnaði nefit, Fms. iii. 186; fölr um nasar, pale-nebbed, Alm. 2; taka fyrir nasar e-m, Fs. 141; draga nasir at e-u, to snuffle, smell at a thing, Ísl. ii. 136; stinga nösum í feld, to cover the face in one’s cloak, Sighvat; stinga nösum niðr, to bite the dust, Fms. iii. 189; ef herra þinn lýkr nösum, has his nostrils shut, ceases to breathe, dies, Str. 27; áðr en ek lýk nösum, Þórð. 31 new Ed.; þér mun verða annat eins áðr en lýkr nösum, thy nostrils will be closed before that, a ditty, see the remarks to nábjargir; blóð-nasar, bleeding at the nose; ríða kross í nasar ok eyru ok í hjarsa, N. G. L. i. 339:—in sing. only of one of the nostrils, upp í aðra nösina; það er ekki upp í hálfa nös á ketti, it will not fill the half of the nostril of a cat = it is nothing.

II. metaph. of the beak of a ship; stögin festi á höfði skipsins ok tók af nasarnar, Fms. x. 135, v. l.

COMPDS: nasalæti, nasavit.

n. [nef], a ‘nose-tax,’ poll-tax, payable to the king; en sú var orðsending konungs, at hann beiddi þess Íslendinga, at þeir skyldi við þeim lögum taka sem hann hafði sett í Noregi, en veita honum af landinu þegngildi ok nefgildi, penning fyrir hvert nef, þann er tíu væri fyrir alin vaðmáls, Ó. H. 141; nefgildis-skatta þá er Haraldr faðir hans hafði lagt á allt landit lét hann taka hit ytra með sjó ok um Þrænda-lög, ok leggja til skipa-görðar, Fagrsk. 20. This ancient ‘nose-tax’ was also imposed by the Norsemen on conquered countries, and the name gave rise to strange legends; thus, king Thorgisl, the Norse conqueror of Ireland (A. D. 830–845), is, by an Irish chronicler, said to have levied a tax of an ounce on each hearth, the penalty for defaulters being the loss of their nose. Prof. Munch, Norg. Hist. i. 440, has traced the origin of this legend to the simple fact that the king imposed a ‘nose-tax’ or poll-tax on the conquered Irish, just as Harold Fairhair afterwards did in Norway.

B. [nefi], a weregild payable to the cognates of a person, opp. to bauggildi = the agnate weregild; þat heitir nefgildi er þeir menn taka er kvennsift eru komnir, Grág. ii. 137, N. G. L. i. 185.

COMPDS: nefgildisfrændbót, nefgildismaðr.

(-tta, -tt), v.

1) to blow the nose (s. sér); s. rauðu, to get a bloody nose;

2) fig. to destroy; snýtt hefir þú sifjungum, thou hast destroyed thine own children.

f. worthless fellow.

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t, [cp. Dan. snyde, Engl. snot], to blow the nose; snýta sér; hence snýta blóði, Fas. ii. 320 (in a verse); snýta rauðu, to get a bloody nose, Fms. iii. 147, Karl. 149.

II. metaph., snýtt hefír þú sifjungum, thou hast destroyed thy kinsman, Am. 82 (cp. Dan. snyde = cheat).

1) bristle, bristles; draga burst ór nefi em, to draw a bristle out of one’s nose, to cheat one;

2) gablehead or ridge of a house.

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I. [A. S. byrst, Germ. borste; Swed. bösta], a bristle, Hb. (1865) 22; but also of a hog’s back and bristles, Edda 70; cp. Gullin-bursti, Gold-bristle, the mythical hog of the god Frey; Fas. i. 532 (of the sónargöltr, the sacred hog); Fms. v. 165: the phrase, draga bust ór nefi e-m, to draw a bristle out of one’s nose, to cheat, gull one, Ölk. 36, does not occur anywhere else that we know of; the Engl. say, ‘to lead one by the nose,’ in much the same sense.

II. metaph. the gable of a house (hús-burst), Hkr. iii. 14 (of a shrine), Mar. 106, Konr. 57; og gogginn á bustinni brýnir (of a raven sitting on the top of a house and whetting his bill), Sig. Breiðfjörð.

COMPDS: burstakollr, burstarhár.

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(pl. eyru), n. ear (eyrum hlýðir gestr, en augum skoðar); setja hnefa við e. e-m, to give one a box on the ear; leiða e-n af eyrum, to get rid of one; koma e-m til eyrna, to come to one’s ears, of news; hafa nef í e. e-m, to put the nose in one’s ear, to whisper to one, of a tell-tale.

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n., pl. eyru, gen. eyrna, [Lat. auris; Goth. ausô: A. S. eâre; Engl. ear; O. H. G. ôra; Germ. ohr; Swed. öra, öron; Dan. öre, ören]:—an ear; eyrum hlýðir, en augum skoðar, he listens with his ears, but looks with his eyes, Hm. 7:—proverbs, mörg eru konungs eyru, many are the king’s ears, Orkn. 252; þar eru eyru sæmst sem óxu, the ears fit best where they grow, i. e. a place for everything and everything in its place, Nj. 80; láta inn um eitt eyrat en út um hitt, to let a thing in at one ear and out at the other; láta e-t sem vind um eyrun þjóta, to let a thing blow like the wind about one’s ears, i. e. heed it not; Grími var sem við annat eyrat gengi út þat er Þorsteinn mælti, Brand. 60; svá var sem Kálfi færi um annat eyrat út þótt hann heyrði slíkt talað, Fms. xi. 46; skjóta skolla-eyrum við e-u, to turn a fox’s ear (a deaf ear) to a thing; þar er mér úlfs ván er ek eyru sé’k, I can guess the wolf when I see his ears, Fm. 35, Finnb. 244; við eyra e-m, under one’s nose, Ld. 100; mæla í e. e-m, to speak into one’s ear, Fg. 549; hafa nef í eyra e-m, to put one’s nose in one’s ear, i. e. to be a tell-tale, Lv. 57; leiða e-n af eyrum, to get rid of one, Ísl. ii. 65; setja e-n við eyra e-m, to place a person at one’s ear, of an unpleasant neighbour, Ld. 100; setr (hnefann) við eyra Hými, gave Hymir a box on the ear, Edda 36; e-m loðir e-t í eyrum, it cleaves to one’s ears, i. e. one remembers, Bs. i. 163; reisa, sperra eyrun, to prick up the ears, etc.; koma til eyrna e-m, to come to one’s ears, Nj. 64; roðna út undir bæði eyru, to blush from ear to ear.

COMPDS: eyrnablað, eyrnablaðkr, eyrnasnepill, eyrnabúnaðr, eyrnagull, eyrnahringr, eyrnalof, eyrnamark, eyraruna, eyrnaskefill.

II. some part of a ship, Edda (Gl.)

β. a handle, e. g. on a pot.

γ. anatom., óhljóðs-eyru, the auricles of the heart.

δ. hunds-eyru, dogs-ears (in a book).

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(gen. pl. augna), n.

1) eye;

lúka (bregða) upp augum, bregða augum í sundr, to open (lift up) the eyes;

lúka aptr augum, to shift the eyes;

renna (bregða, leiða) augum til e-s, to turn the eyes to;

leiða e-n augum, to measure one with the eyes;

berja augum í e-t, to take into consideration;

koma augum á e-t, to set eyes on, become aware of;

hafa auga á e-u, t have, keep, an eye upon;

segja e-t í augu upp, to one’s face, right in the face;

unna e-m sem augum í höfði sér, as one’s own eye-balls;

e-m vex e-t í augu, one has scruples about;

náit er nef augum, the nose is neighbor to the eyes;

gløggt er gests augat, a guest’s eye is sharp;

mörg eru dags augu, the day has many eyes;

eigi leyna augu, ef ann kona manni, the eyes cannot hide it if a woman loves a man;

2) hole, aperture in a needle (nálarauga), in a millstone (kvarnarauga) or an axe-head;

3) pit full of water.

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n., gen. pl. augna, [Lat. oculus, a dimin. of an obsolete ocus; Gr. οφθαλμός (Boeot. οκταλμός); Sanskr. aksha: the word is common to Sanskrit with the Slavonic, Greek, Roman, and Teutonic idioms: Goth. augo; Germ, auge; A. S. eâge; Engl. eye; Scot. ee; Swed. öga; Dan. öje, etc. Grimm s. v. suggests a relationship to Lat. acies, acutus, etc. The letter n appears in the plur. of the mod. northern languages; the Swedes say ‘ögon,’ oculi, the Danes ‘öjne;’ with the article ‘ögonen’ and ‘öjnene;’ Old Engl. ‘eyne;’ Scot. ‘een’]

I. an eye. It is used in Icel. in a great many proverbs, e. g. betr sjá augu en auga, ‘two eyes see better than one,’ i. e. it is good to yield to advice: referring to love, unir auga meðan á sér, the eye is pleased whilst it can behold (viz. the object of its affection), Fas. i. 125, cp. Völs. rím. 4. 189; eigi leyna augu, ef ann kona manni, the eyes cannot bide it, if a woman love a man, i. e. they tell their own tale, Ísl. ii. 251. This pretty proverb is an απ. λεγ. l. c. and is now out of use; it is no doubt taken from a poem in a dróttkvætt metre, (old proverbs have alliteration, but neither rhymes nor assonance, rhyming proverbs are of a comparatively late date): medic., eigi er sá heill er í augun verkir, Fbr. 75; sá drepr opt fæti ( slips) er augnanna missir, Bs. i. 742; hætt er einu auganu nema vel fari, he who has only one eye to lose will take care of it (comm.); húsbóndans auga sér bezt, the master’s eye sees best; glögt er gests augat, a guest’s eye is sharp; mörg eru dags augu, the day has many eyes, i. e. what is to be hidden must not be done in broad daylight, Hm. 81; náið er nef augum, the nose is near akin to the eyes (tua res agitur paries quum proximus ardet), Nj. 21; opt verðr slíkt á sæ, kvað selr, var skotinn í auga, this often happens at sea, quoth the seal, when he was shot in the eye, of one who is in a scrape, Fms. viii. 402. In many phrases, at unna ( to love) e-m sem augum í höfði sér, as one’s own eye-balls, Nj. 217; þótti mér slökt it sætasta ljós augna minna, by his death the sweetest light of my eyes was quenched, 187: hvert grætr þú nú Skarphéðinn? eigi er þat segir Skarphéðinn, en hitt er satt at súrnar í augum, the eyes smart from smoke, 200: renna, líta augum, to seek with the eyes, to look upon: it is used in various connections, renna, líta ástaraugum, vánaraugum, vinaraugum, trúaraugum, öfundaraugum, girndarauga, with eyes of love, hope, friendship, faith, envy, desire: mæna a. denotes an upward or praying look; stara, fixed; horfa, attentive; lygna, blundskaka, stupid or slow; blína, glápa, góna, vacant or silly; skima, wandering; hvessa augu, a threatening look; leiða e-n a., to measure one with the eyes; gjóta, or skjóta hornauga, or skjóta a. í skjálg, to throw a side glance of dislike or ill-will; gjóta augum is always in a bad sense; renna, líta mostly in a good sense: gefa e-u auga, oculum adjicere alicui; hafa auga á e-u, to keep an eye on it; segja e-m e-t í augu upp, to one’s face, Orkn. 454; at augum, adverb. with open eyes, Hervar. S. (in a verse), etc. As regards various movements of the eyes; ljúka upp augum, to open the eyes; láta aptr augun, to shut the eyes; draga auga í pung, to draw the eye into a purse, i. e. shut one eye; depla augum, to blink; at drepa titlinga (Germ. äugeln, blinzen), to wink, to kill tits with the suppressed glances of the eye; glóðarauga, a suffusion on the eye, hyposphagma; kýrauga. proptosis; vagl á auga, a beam in the eye; skjálgr, Lat. limus; ský, albugo; tekinn til augnanna, with sunken eyes, etc., Fél. ix. 192; a. bresta, in death: hafa stýrur í augum, to have prickles in the eyes, when the eyes ache for want of sleep: vatna músum, ‘to water mice,’ used esp. of children weeping silently and trying to hide their tears. As to the look or expression of the eyes there are sundry metaph. phrases, e. g. hafa fékróka í augum, to have wrinkles at the corners of the eyes, of a shrewd money getting fellow, Fms. ii. 84, cp. Orkn. 330, 188, where krókauga is a cognom.; kvenna-króka, one insinuating with the fair sex; hafa ægishjalm í augum is a metaphor of one with a piercing, commanding eye, an old mythical term for the magical power of the eye, v. Grimm’s D. Mythol. under Ægishjalmr: vera mjótt á milli augnanna, the distance between the eyes being short, is a popular saying, denoting a close, stingy man, hence mjóeygr means close: e-m vex e-t í augu (now augum), to shrink back from, of a thing waxing and growing before one’s eyes so that one dares not face it. As to the shape, colour, etc. of the eye, vide the adj. ‘eygr’ or ‘eygðr’ in its many compds. Lastly we may mention the belief, that when the water in baptism touches the eyes, the child is thereby in future life prevented from seeing ghosts or goblins, vide the words úfreskr and skygn. No spell can touch the human eye; en er harm sá augu hans (that of Loki in the shape of a bird), þá grunaði hann (the giant) at maðr mundi vera, Edda 60; í bessum birni þykist hón kenna augu Bjarnar konungs sonar, Fas. i. 51, vide Ísl. Þjóðs.

II. meton. and metaph. auga is used in a great many connections:

α. astron.; þjaza augu, the eyes of the giant Thiazi, is a constellation, probably the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux; the story is told in the Edda 47, cp. Harbarðsljóð 19; (Snorri attributes it to Odin, the poem to Thor.)

β. botan., auga = Lat. gemma, Hjalt. 38; kattarauga, cat’s eye, is the flower forget-me-not.

γ. the spots that form the numbers on dice, Magn. 530.

δ. the hole in a millstone; kvarnarauga, Edda 79, 221, Hkr. i. 121: the opening into which an axe handle is fastened, Sturl. ii. 91: a pit full of water, Fs. 45: nálarauga, a needle’s eye: vindauga, wind’s eye or window (which orig. had no glass in it), A. S. eag-dura (eye-door); also gluggi, q. v.: gleraugu, spectacles.

ε. anatom., the pan of the hip joint, v. augnakarl, Fms. iii. 392: gagnaugu, temples.

ζ. hafsauga, the bottom of the ocean, in the popular phrase, fara út í hafsauga, descendere ad tartara.

η. poët. the sun is called heimsauga, dagsauga, Jónas 119.

COMPDS either with sing. auga or pl. augna; in the latter case mod. usage sometimes drops the connecting vowel a, e. g. augn-dapr, augn-depra, augn-fagr, etc. auga-bragð (augna-), n. the twinkling of an eye, Hm. 77; á einu a., in the twinkling of an eye, Ver. 32, Edda (pref.) 146, Sks. 559, Rb. 568: a glance, look, snart a., Fms. ii. 174; mikit a., v. 335; úfagrligt a., Fs. 43; hafa a. af e-u, to cast a look at, Fbr. 49, Fms. xi. 424: in the phrase, at hafa e-n (or verða) at augabragði, metaph. to make sport of, to mock, deride, gaze at, Stj. 627, 567, Hm. 5, 29. auga-brun, f. the eye-brow. auga-staðr, m. an eye-mark; hafa a. á e-u, to mark with the eye. auga-steinn (augna-), m. the eye-ball, Hkr. iii. 365, Fms. v. 152. augna-bending, f. a warning glance, Pr. 452. augna-blik, n. mod. = augnabragð, s. augna-bólga, u, f. ophthalmia. augna-brá, f. the eye-lid, D. N. i. 216. augna-fagr and aug-fagr, adj. fair-eyed, Fas. ii. 365, Fms. v. 200. augna-fró, f. a plant, eye-bright, euphrasia, also augna-gras, Hjalt. 231. augna-fræ, n. lychnis alpina. augna-gaman, n. a sport, delight for the eyes to gaze at, Ld. 202, Bær. 17, Fsm. 5 (love, sweetheart). augna-gróm, n. (medic.) a spot in the eye; metaph., ekki a., no mere speck, of whatever can easily be seen. augna-hár, n. an eye-lash. augna-hvannr, m. the eye-lid. augna-hvita, u, f. albugo. augna-karl, n. the pan of the hip joint; slíta or slitna or augnaköllunum, Fas. iii. 392. augna-kast, n. a wild glance, Barl. 167. augna-kláði, a, m. psorophthalmi. augna-krókr, n. the corner of the eye. augna-lag, n. a look, Ld. 154. augna-lok, n. ‘eye-covers,’ eye-lids. augna-mein, n. a disease of the eye. augna-mjörkvi, a, m. dimness of the eye, Pr. 471. augna-ráð, n. expression of the eye. augna-skot, n. a look askance, Gþl. 286, Fs. 44 (of cats). augna-slím, n. glaucoma. augna-staðr, m. the socket of the eye, Magn. 532. augna-sveinn, m. a lad leading a blind man, Str. 46. augn-tepra, u, f. hippus. augna-topt, f. the socket of the eye. augna-verkr, m. pain in the eye, Hkr. ii. 257, Bs. i. 451, Pr. 471, Bjarn. 58. augna-vik, n. pl. = augnakrókr. augna-þungi, a, m. heaviness of the eye, Hkr. ii. 257.

1) starvation; detta, niðr í hor, to starve to death;

2) mucus from the nose.

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I. starvation; detta niðr í hor, to starve to death, Bs. i. 875; deyja úr hor, id. hor-dauðr, adj. starved to death, hor-ket, n. meat of a starved beast.

II. [A. S. horu = sordes], mucus from the nose, N. G. L. i. 351, Fas. iii. 653: in the saying, aptr sækir horr í nef.

n. the down of plants, hair, feathers, Lat. lanugo; skalf á hnakka hý, Sturl. i. 22 (in a verse); hý eðr fífa, Stj. 40. hý-nefr, m. downy nose, a nickname of one with a tuft of hair on his nose, Landn.

1) the quick (under the nail or under a horse’s hoof);

2) running fluid; yeast;

3) kvika í nösum, polypus in the nostrils (?).

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u, f. the quick under the nail or under a horse’s hoof, Bs. ii. 184, freq. in mod. usage.

II. fermentation, swelling, of a fluid; eitr-kvikja, q. v.; ok af þeim kviku dropum kviknaði ok varð maims líkandi, Edda 4; see kvikva.

að, to move, stir; hann kvikar ekki; this verb is freq. in mod. usage, but is not recorded in old writers.

u, f. obstructions of the ducts in the nose, which used to be thought to be quick (i. e. live) worms; Vespasianus hafði kvikur í nösum, en þat mein kalla þeir ‘vespas,’ því var hann kallaðr Vespasianus, V. had ‘worms in the nose,’ which disease they call vespas, therefore he was called V. (sic), Post. (Unger) 155.

(-tta, -tt), v.

1) to blow the nose (s. sér); s. rauðu, to get a bloody nose;

2) fig. to destroy; snýtt hefir þú sifjungum, thou hast destroyed thine own children.

f. worthless fellow.

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u, f. a ‘snot,’ worthless fellow; vesalar snýtur, Fas. ii. 550.

(að), v. to turn up one’s nose at (t. víð e-u).

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að, to turn up one’s nose at; t. við e-u, Fas. i. 54.

að, to cut off one’s nose, Sir. 35.

u, f. eagle-nose, name of an ogress, Rm.

s, m. a fine for á., N. G. L. i. 171 (for cutting one’s nose off).