Powder My Nose

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Meaning:

Powder My Nose means a woman wants to visit the bathroom to use the toilet, to reapply makeup, or to have a private conversation with other women.

“Excuse me while I powder my nose.”

Origin:

OK, so are you asking where did this phrase come from? The powder room was the place in an eighteenth-century home where someone went to refresh the powder on their wig. It was also referred to as a powder closet or wig closet, usually in a location that was convenient for guests to use without going into the private areas of the home.

Even after wigs fell out of fashion, the powder closet was still used as a station to freshen one’s appearance and to powder one's, umm, awkwardly shiny nose.

As time went on the powder chair was replaced with chamber pots and washing basins, and later toilets and sinks — the modern form we use today.

The Victorians, known for their genteel verbal expressions, would have never referred to what actually happens in a bathroom, so powdering your nose, was apparently a socially acceptable way to excuse yourself from polite company, a trait that still happens today.

Example:

Today we still use the term” powder my nose” as a way to be polite and excuse yourself from a group. An example sentence is:

“I'm going to powder my nose before the show starts.”

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