Make Your Point, Jr. > Words in ABC Order > snivel

Study the words SNIVEL and SNIVELING: (Source) To snivel is to drip mucus (or snot) out of your nose. To snivel can also be to sniff in a loud, wet-sounding way: to try to pull a lot of mucus back into your nose. Ew, right? (Source) While the word "sniff" is usually pretty polite, the word "snivel" is gross and mean. You'd say that someone is sniveling if they look childish or disgusting, maybe because they're having a tantrum, or they're crying or complaining for no good reason. So, if you describe someone as sniveling, you mean they're talking or whining through their tears and maybe through their snot, too, because they're acting like a whiny little baby. It's pretty insulting to say, "Quit your sniveling," or "Look at that sniveling kid." (Source) When someone is sniveling, they seem weak, babyish, bratty, or cowardly. Snivelers are people who fuss and complain when they really shouldn't. Here's the sniveling villain Grima Wormtongue, from The Lord of the Rings, crying and begging as he crawls away from the people who have seen through his evil, tricky schemes. (Source) By the way, you can spell "sniveled," "sniveling," and "sniveler" either with a single L before the suffix, like I've done, or with a double L ("snivelled," "snivelling," and "sniveller"). The single L is more common in American English, so I recommend sticking with that.   Make a flash card: You can write your own definition and choose your own picture, or copy mine. Term Definition Picture snivel to whine or complain, or to talk through your tears and your snot   Write your own sentence! You can use either of the two ideas I'll suggest, or you can invent your own. Include as much detail as you can! (Source)   Write a sentence with the word SNIVEL or SNIVELING: Remember: sniveling is sniffing or whining in a babyish way, as if your nose is dripping. Idea 1: "Even if (something really disappointing happens), you won't see me sniveling like a baby in front of (a group of people)." Idea 2: "In (some book, show, or movie), (someone) is the sniveling (liar, coward, or villain) who (does something sneaky or mean)." You can type in here. When you're done, copy and paste your sentence wherever you'd like it to go.