Cock a snook
Suggest a CorrectionMeaning
Make a derisive gesture, or openly show contempt for a person or rule. Informal and defiant. The literal gesture is also known as thumbing one's nose; the figurative construction normally takes 'at.' Regional use: Chiefly British English.
Origin
Literally, to cock a snook is to put the thumb to the nose and spread the fingers in mockery. The gesture is much older than its settled English name, but the expression itself is found in a 1791 diary. 'Cock' describes setting or tilting something into position; the origin of 'snook' in this use remains unknown.
Research Sources
Variants
- Cock a snook at someone
- Cock snooks at
Usage Examples
- The cartoon cocked a snook at every solemn rule in the handbook.
- Children behind the cart cocked a snook at the departing official.
- By reopening without permission, the proprietor was cocking a snook at the council.