olfactory
American
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of olfactory
1650–60; < Latin olfactōrius, equivalent to olfac ( ere ) to smell at, sniff ( ol ( ēre ) to smell (akin to odor ) + facere to make, do) + -tōrius -tory 1
Explanation
Something olfactory has to do with the sense of smell. The odor from that factory is a symphony of olfactory delights. Not. Though we typically think of dogs as the olfactory champions of the world, what with their remarkable ability to sniff out practically anything, the true title belongs to the polar bear. Healthy, adult polar bears possess olfactory gifts that boggle the mind: they can smell a seal under the ice from over a kilometer away. One way to try to remember the meaning of the word olfactory is to think of factory. Your nose is the "factory" where odors are processed. What visual is to the eyes, olfactory is to the nose.
Vocabulary lists containing olfactory
Fahrenheit 451
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The Nose Knows: Olfactory Vocabulary
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100 Great Words from "Fahrenheit 451" -- Part I Vocabulary
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Kyle Shanahan must believe the olfactory exhilaration of smelling salts enhances his coaching ability.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Pigeons "have an extremely sophisticated olfactory system, so that they can smell grass seed when it's being sown," said Davis.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
The olfactory bulb, located in the forebrain, processes signals from scent receptors in the nose.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 11, 2026
The initial goal is to create a diagnostic test to measure olfactory loss—a marker of Covid-19 and other conditions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026
It came to my olfactory sense, full and fresh, overwhelming: the smell of vegetation.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
“Thank God my moustache filters out some of the stench. My olfactories are already beginning to send out distress signals.”
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
To his olfactories it is the perfume of Araby.
From The Land of Fire A Tale of Adventure by Mayne Reid
So presently savory odors began to arise in the vicinity, that, when wafted to the olfactories of the three boys coming wearily back over their morning trail would be sure to hasten their footsteps.
From Boy Scouts: Tenderfoot Squad or, Camping at Raccoon Lodge by Alan Douglas
The fragrance of the coffee, the smell of the fried ham smote Shorty's olfactories with almost irresistible force.
From Si Klegg, Book 4 (of 6) Experiences Of Si And Shorty On The Great Tullahoma Campaign by John McElroy
A man of delicate olfactories is almost forced to hold at arm's length a wife with a fetid breath.
From The Physical Life of Woman: Advice to the Maiden, Wife and Mother by George H. (George Henry) Napheys
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
