camel's nose

noun

A situation where the permitting of some small act will lead to a larger undesirable act or circumstance.

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Meanings

nouncamel's nose (plural camels' noses)

plural camels' noses

  1. idiomaticA situation where the permitting of some small act will lead to a larger undesirable act or circumstance.

Origin

The root phrase is usually claimed to be a saying of Arabs or Middle Eastern cultures, roughly as follows: : Do not allow a camel to put his nose under the edge of your tent, for soon you will have a camel in your tent.

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Cite this entry
APA

camel's nose. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/camel's%20nose

MLA

“camel's nose.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/camel's%20nose. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “camel's nose,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/camel's%20nose.

Source: camel's nose on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.