English · Slang Historical

bowsprit

Preserved but no longer current.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

The nose, from its being the most projecting part of the human face, as the bowsprit is of a ship.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

mũi, vì nó là phần突 nhất của khuôn mặt người, như bowsprit của con tàu

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Era: ca. 1811 (Georgian)

Where it’s used: Origin British & Irish English

Sources & notes

Historical definition reproduced from Grose’s Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue (1811 edition, public domain; Project Gutenberg #5402, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.

Topics: Historical slang (1800s)

Common questions

What does “bowsprit” mean?

The nose, from its being the most projecting part of the human face, as the bowsprit is of a ship.

Is “bowsprit” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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