sniff
sniff
Definition
sniff (snif)
intransitive verb
- to draw in air through the nose with enough force to be heard, as in clearing the nose or smelling something
- to express disdain, skepticism, etc. by sniffing
Etymology: ME sniffen, akin to Dan snive, of echoic orig.
transitive verb
- to breathe in forcibly through the nose; draw in or inhale nasally
- to smell (a substance) by sniffing
- to detect, perceive, or get a suspicion of by or as by sniffing: often with out
noun
- an act or sound of sniffing
- something sniffed
sniff′er noun
sniff
Synonyms
sniff
Usage Examples
Object
- glue: I don't wanna sniff glue like me mates.
- cocaine: Apparently Kate was caught sniffing the cocaine with some people related to Kate's boyfriend Pete Doherty's band.
- solvent: There is also a strong possibility that sniffing solvents over a longer period of time could make someone's epilepsy worse.
- packet: Therefore, " Bob " will only respond if he has sniffed the packet from the wire.
- air: Abraham sniffed the still air, then crouched beside tall grass stems.
- substance: Health risks Sniffing these substances can be lethal or cause long-term damage.
Modifying Another Word
- loudly: One of the male lawyers, the taller of the two, sniffed loudly and then said.
- about: He then set off eastwards along about 7 meters of passage to have a sniff about.
- again: We kind of took a liking to each other, and that was that. ' The policeman sniffed again.
- hard: She sniffed hard and looked up at me, " I love you, you know that?
- then: A rather scruffy looking Wesley Kerr then sniffed his was a location " far too grand to be on any Monopoly board.
- still: However, if a hacker compromises the end-nodes of a VPN connection, they can still sniff the traffic.
Followed by an intransitive particle
- out: And of course, sniffing out his next project.
Followed by a transitive particle
- around: Doing nothing more than enjoy a pint sniff around the girls put a bet on at the bookies.
Particle object:
- drug: Wasn't much of a lateral career shift to work in vise so I helped the police sniff out drugs as well.
Used with why or when
- when: Actors can use non-word sounds as character mannerisms, like a character who always sniffs loudly when they get angry.
Particle object:
- nose: It is usually sniffed up the nose or sometimes made into a solution, which is then injected.
Preposition: of
Browse dictionary entries near sniff
- snide
- snickersnee
- snicker
- snick
- SNG
- snell
- sneezewort
- sneezeweed
- sneeze
- sneer
- Sniffer Program or Packet Sniffer
- sniffle
- sniffy
- snifter
- snigger
- sniggle
- snip
- snipe
- sniper
- sniperscope
