强调“主动、好奇地四处查看/打听”的动作,常带有“窥探、多管闲事”的隐含意味(但不一定是贬义,有时只是“随意翻找”)。
该短语通常与介词/副词搭配,构成完整表达:
1、 nose about (for sth):四处搜寻某物
(for 引出“寻找的目标”)
例:She’s nosing about for her lost keys in the living room.
(她正在客厅里翻找丢失的钥匙。)
2、 nose about (in sth):在某处翻找/探听
(in 引出“搜寻的地点/范围”)
例:Don’t nose about in my desk—those are private papers!
(别翻我的书桌——那些是私人文件!)
3、 nose about (into sb’s business):探听某人的私事
(into 强调“介入、干涉”,更贴近“多管闲事”)
例:I hate it when people nose about into my personal life.
(我讨厌别人探听我的私生活。)
snoop around:更强调“窥探、暗中调查”(贬义更强),比如 snoop around sb’s house(暗中窥探某人的房子)。
poke about:更侧重“随意翻弄、摸索”(中性),比如 poke about in a box(在盒子里翻来翻去)。
nose into:与 nose about 类似,但更强调“介入、干涉”,比如 nose into other people’s affairs(干涉别人的事)。
① The cat nosed about in the garden, looking for mice.
(猫在花园里东闻西嗅,找老鼠。)
② My little brother always noses about in my backpack when I’m not home.
(我不在家时,弟弟总翻我的背包。)
③ Stop nosing about—this is a secret project!
(别瞎打听了——这是机密项目!)
总结:nose about 是日常对话中常用的短语,核心是“好奇地四处查看/打听”,具体含义根据上下文调整(翻找东西/探听消息),注意搭配不同介词时的细微差别~