nod
/nɒd
/verb (nods, nodding, nodded)
1 [no object] Lower and raise one’s head slightly and briefly, especially in greeting, assent, or understanding, or to give someone a signal: he looked around for support and everyone nodded [with object]: she nodded her head in agreement...
- Emily nodded slowly in agreement while kicking a box to the corner.
- The boy nodded mutely, tears brimming in his eyes.
- Unable to resist his charm and devastating smile, Blair nodded mutely in response.
Synonyms
incline, bob, bow, dip, wag, duck
1.1 [with object] Signify or express (greeting, assent, or understanding) by nodding: he nodded his consent...
- Stifling another giggle, she only nods her agreement, unable to voice her assent.
- He became quizzical yet some of them nodded their assent or what he took to be assent.
- When I ask her about this, McTeer nods her assent.
Synonyms
signal, gesture, gesticulate, motion, sign, indicate
1.2 (nod something through) informal Approve something by general agreement, without discussion: the DTI nodded through the bid from Airtours...
- But he added that A-Levels were going the way of GCSEs in the sense that universities and companies were increasingly unlikely to look at candidates with less than a C, now that 24 out of 25 entries were nodded through.
- I am disappointed that this change was nodded through without any debate, and treated as a budget-saving measure.
- The decision to axe the brainwave was nodded through by both Conservative and Labour councillors without debate or comment.
1.3Move one’s head up and down repeatedly: he shut his eyes, nodding to the beat figurative foxgloves nodding by the path
2 [no object] Let one’s head fall forward when drowsy or asleep: Anna nodded over her book...
- Basic chores done, I gave up and went to sit in the kitchen, where I slumped in my chair, yawning and nodding.
- It's quiet, the woman's out, the kid's asleep, and I am nodding over a notebook and tea, wearing fuzzy slippers.
2.1Make a mistake due to a momentary lack of alertness or attention: scientific reason, like Homer, sometimes nods...
- She nodded toward a corner of the room, where five chairs sat in a semi-circle around the fire.
- I sighed quietly and looked over at Quinn, before slipping my hand from Jordan's and nodding toward the open door.
- ‘Oh, and look at that,’ he said, elbowing me and nodding toward a woman wearing tight ski pants.
Synonyms
make a mistake, be mistaken, be in error, be wrong, be incorrect, get something wrong, make an error, make a slip, err, trip up, stumble;
be careless, be inattentive, be negligent
informal slip up
With allusion to Latin dormitat Homerus 'even Homer nods' (Horace Ars Poet. 359)
3 [with object and adverbial of direction] Soccer Head (the ball) without great force: Henry nodded the ball over the line...
- He swung in a cross which Walker failed to cut out and the Zimbabwe player nodded the ball into an empty net from two yards.
- He nodded the ball down only for the goalkeeper to stick out a hand and paw it away.
- County missed a glorious chance when defensive panic from a free-kick caused Gavin to nod the ball over the advancing Henderson.
noun
1An act of nodding the head: at a nod from his father he left the room...
- He answered my father with a slight nod, his cold eyes never leaving my own.
- ‘Yes,’ she said with a slight nod and as she started backing slowly away.
- Alexis returned the embrace and agreed with the slight nod of her head.
Synonyms
signal, indication, sign, cue;
gesture
inclination, bob, bow, dip, duck;
greeting, acknowledgement
1.1 (a nod to) A gesture of acknowledgement or concession to: the device is a nod to the conventions of slapstick...
- The deodorant and all the rest is merely a nod to convention.
- I wouldn't be offended by dubbing, since the words are nothing but a nod to convention.
- It would indicate thoughtfulness and a nod to common sense.
Phrases
nodding acquaintance
be on nodding terms
get the nod
give someone/thing the nod
a nod's as good as a wink to a blind horse
on the nod
Phrasal verbs
nod off
Origin
Late Middle English (as a verb): perhaps of Low German origin; compare with Middle High German notten 'move about, shake'. The noun dates from the mid 16th century.
The word nod came into English from German. The proverb a nod's as good as a wink to a blind horse, now usually ‘a nod's as good as a wink’, is first recorded in a letter written in 1793. The use of a nod and a wink to mean ‘a hint or suggestion’ is first found in 1710, several decades earlier than the proverb: it seems that the ‘blind horse’ was tacked on to the original phrase for fun.