- snivel (v.)
- Old English *snyflan "to run at the nose" (cf. snyflung "running of the nose"), related to snofl "nasal mucus." Meaning "to be in an (affected) tearful state" is from 1680s. Related: Snivelled; snivelling. Snivelling "mean-spirited, weak" is recorded from 1640s; Melville coined snivelization (1849).