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under your nose

right in front of you but unnoticed

In Idioms & Sayings

In more detail

1. (idiom) right in front of you, in a place where you should have noticed it

2. (idiom) happening very close to you without you noticing or doing anything about it

Examples

• 1. I searched everywhere for my keys, but they were under my nose the whole time—sitting right on the table.
• 2. The problem was growing under our noses while we were too busy to pay attention.

How to use under your nose

This idiom emphasizes that something is or was in an obvious location or obvious to notice, yet went unnoticed or unacted upon. It often carries mild criticism or surprise that someone failed to see or prevent something despite it being readily apparent. The phrase works in both literal contexts (a lost object) and figurative ones (a problem developing without intervention).

Register: informal

Common phrases

• right under your nose
• under your very nose
• happening under your nose
• steal something under your nose
• slip something under your nose

Synonyms

right in front of you · before your eyes · in plain sight · staring you in the face · obvious

Opposites

hidden · concealed · out of sight

A common mistake

Learners sometimes use this phrase to mean simply 'near you' without the implication of something being obvious or noticeable; the idiom specifically conveys that something should have been noticed or prevented.

Nearby in Idioms & Sayings

the best of both worlds, through thick and thin, time flies, up in the air, wrap your head around, a piece of one's mind

Keep going

How to remember the words you read · Spaced repetition, explained