I. ˈsnəfəl verb
( snuffled ; snuffled ; snuffling -f(ə)liŋ ; snuffles )
Etymology: akin to Dutch & Low German snuffelen to nose about, snuffle — more at snivel
intransitive verb
1. : to snuff especially audibly and repeatedly
the tiny dog snuffled hungrily over the meat — T.B.Costain
took her handkerchief … and snuffled into it — Jean Stafford
2. : to breathe through an obstructed nose with a broken sound
a herd of buffalo stomping and snuffling around — Jackson Burgess
3.
a. : to speak in a nasal tone
the old man snuffled indistinctly in reply
b. archaic : to speak in a canting sanctimonious manner
4. : to make a sound like a snuffle
the wind snuffling at the window
a teletype snuffles intermittently — Lamp
5. : snivel , whimper
the child merely snuffled a little
transitive verb
1. : to snuff up
the wind is warm and the horse snuffles it — Millen Brand
2. : to snuff out
dogs snuffling rabbits
3. : to snuff at
old hound that used to snuffle your door and moan — R.P.Warren
a snooping dog snuffled the thickets — George Heinold
II. noun
( -s )
1.
a. : the act or fact of snuffling
b. : the sound made in snuffling
the snort and snuffle of the straining oxen — Victor Canning
2. : a nasal twang
talked with an adenoidal snuffle — Earle Birney
3. snuffles plural : sniffles
4. snuffles plural but usually singular in construction : a respiratory disorder in animals marked especially by catarrhal inflammation and sniffling: as
a. : a contagious disease of rabbits characterized by nasal discharge, sneezing, rubbing of the nose, and gradual emaciation and caused by a bacterium ( Brucella bronchiseptica )
b. : bullnose 3