sniveled or snivelled; sniveling or snivelling ˈsni-və-liŋ How to pronounce snivel (audio)
ˈsniv-liŋ

intransitive verb

1
: to run at the nose
2
: to snuff mucus up the nose audibly : snuffle
3
: to cry or whine with snuffling
4
: to speak or act in a whining, sniffling, tearful, or weakly emotional manner

snivel

2 of 2

noun

1
snivels plural, dialect : head cold
2
: an act of sniveling

Did you know?

There's never been anything pretty about sniveling. Snivel, which originally meant simply "to have a runny nose," has an Old English ancestor whose probable form was snyflan. Its lineage includes some other charming words of yore: an Old English word for mucus, snofl; the Middle Dutch word for a head cold, snof; the Old Norse word for snout, which is snoppa; and nan, a Greek verb meaning "to flow." Nowadays, we mostly use snivel as we have since the 1600s: when self-pitying whining is afoot, whether or not such sniveling is accompanied by unchecked nasal flow.

Examples of snivel in a Sentence

Verb millionaires sniveling about their financial problems “Woe is me,” she sniveled.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
But when Aurelius informs his son, Commodus (a sniveling Joaquin Phoenix), the latter murders his father before the decision is made public. Lisa De Los Reyes, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English *snyflan; akin to Dutch snuffelen to snuffle, snuffen to sniff

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of snivel was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Snivel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snivel. Accessed 20 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

snivel

verb
sniv·​el
ˈsniv-əl
sniveled or snivelled; sniveling or snivelling
-(ə-)liŋ
1
: to draw mucus up the nose loud enough to be heard
2
: to cry or whine with sniffling
3
: to speak or act in a whining manner
sniveler
-(ə-)lər
noun

More from Merriam-Webster on snivel

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!