nosegay C2+ Topic:Word Formation & Derivatives US /ˈnoʊzɡeɪ/ UK /ˈnəʊzɡeɪ/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a small bunch of flowers, especially a fragrant one She carried a nosegay of violets to the wedding. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a small bunch of flowers,... posybouquetcorsagetussie-mussiebunch Word family Related forms nosegay Etymology AI details From Middle English nose ('nose') + gay ('ornament, gay thing'), thus literally 'a thing that adorns or pleases the nose'. nosu Old English gai Old French View etymology graph -> Topics Word Formation & Derivatives General Vocabulary External links Google Images Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary # nosegay **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈnoʊzɡeɪ/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈnəʊzɡeɪ/ ## Meanings 1. a small bunch of flowers, especially a fragrant one ## Examples - She carried a nosegay of violets to the wedding. ## Synonyms - posy - bouquet - corsage - tussie-mussie - bunch ## Related Forms - nose - gay ## Roots and Affixes - Root: nosu - Root: gai ## Etymology From Middle English nose ('nose') + gay ('ornament, gay thing'), thus literally 'a thing that adorns or pleases the nose'. ## AI Etymology Nosegay comes from Middle English nose ('nose') + gay ('ornament, gay thing'), thus literally 'a thing that adorns or pleases the nose'. The etymological trail includes Old English nosu and Old French gai. As a noun, nosegay means a small bunch of flowers, especially a fragrant one. The same family is visible in related forms such as nose and gay. Morphologically, the word is built from the elements named in its history, so the modern form preserves a visible compound, prefix, or suffix structure. ## Topics - Word Formation & Derivatives - General Vocabulary markdown