sniff

American  

[snif] / snɪf /

verb (used without object)

• sniffs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sniffed,
  past participle,  past
• sniffing
  present participle

1. to draw air through the nose in short, audible inhalations.

2. to clear the nose by so doing; sniffle.

3. to smell by short inhalations.

4. to show disdain, contempt, etc., by or as by sniffing.

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verb (used with object)

• sniffs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sniffed,
  past participle,  past
• sniffing
  present participle

1. to perceive by or as by smelling.

   to sniff a scandal.

2. to inhale through the nose.

   to sniff the air.

noun

• sniffs
  plural

1. an act of sniffing; a single, short, audible inhalation.

2. the sound made by such an act.

3. a scent or odor perceived.

   a sniff of perfume.

sniff British  

/ snɪf /

verb

1. to inhale through the nose, usually in short rapid audible inspirations, as for the purpose of identifying a scent, for clearing a congested nasal passage, or for taking a drug or intoxicating fumes

2. to perceive or attempt to perceive (a smell) by inhaling through the nose

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noun

1. the act or sound of sniffing

2. a smell perceived by sniffing, esp a faint scent

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sniffing
  noun
• sniffingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sniffs
  plural

Participles

• sniffing
  present
• sniffed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sniff
  simple
• sniffs
  simple
• have sniffed
  perfect
• has sniffed
  perfect
• am sniffing
  progressive
• are sniffing
  progressive
• is sniffing
  progressive
• have been sniffing
  perfect progressive
• has been sniffing
  perfect progressive

Past

• sniffed
  simple
• had sniffed
  perfect
• was sniffing
  progressive
• were sniffing
  progressive
• had been sniffing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sniff
  simple
• will have sniffed
  perfect
• will be sniffing
  progressive
• will have been sniffing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of sniff

1300–50; Middle English; back formation from snivel

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Explanation

Smell that cake baking? No? Take a sniff. A sniff is when you take air in through your nose to smell something. Dogs sniff a lot. It's how they get to know the world. Imagine this when you see the figurative use for sniff meaning to snoop as in, "The detective was sniffing around for clues." Sniff is one of those words that sound like what they mean. Take a big sniff and listen, you'll see. If you have a cold, and you keep sniffing, you have what's known as the sniffles.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sniff sniffs sniffed sniffing

Smart’s team doesn’t have a single rusher or receiver averaging even 50 yards per game, and none of the Bulldogs will sniff the Heisman Trophy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

And now, the six year old lab joins her owner on the beaches to sniff it out.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

Systematic funds follow trends in the market, picking up on signals sent by price action — either up or down — that their models and trading algorithms sniff out.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

The audience can sniff out when you’ve lost the spark of it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

His gray fur looks soft, and his whiskers twitch as he gets closer, like he’s trying to get a sniff of me.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy

"In an hour, they can do thousands of sniffs," co-founder Akash Kulgod, 26, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026

The firm uses computer-driven strategies to trade based on patterns and signals it sniffs out in markets and big data sets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 1, 2026

He has his morning cup of coffee out there while Daisy sniffs around, works her guard duty shifts, and takes in the million-dollar view, which stretches all the way to Santa Catalina Island.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 27, 2025

Before long, Gaga’s version of her wicked queen sniffs out her prey.

From Salon ● Apr. 16, 2025

Ziggy sniffs it a whole lot, paws at the ground a bit, and turns around in a few circles.

From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks

Resy recently suspended a user’s account when it sniffed agent activity, but it’s not clear if this behavior is officially allowed or not.

From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026

But some have sniffed at this focus on "vibes".

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

The New York Times eventually sniffed out the backroom deal.

From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026

And reaching a first European final in 14 years is an achievement not to be sniffed at.

From BBC ● May 22, 2026

“I’m all sweaty from being in the kitchen,” I said, noting how drenched my shirt was, and I sniffed it.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

It was good news for Romesh at least, whose hay fever saved the day - Sharon Rooney could hear him sniffing constantly next to her so knew he couldn't have been a traitor.

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

The enemy flew drones that could find Ukrainian positions by sniffing out their electronic emissions, including radio.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

“I believe equities are sniffing out the deteriorating credit quality in the $3 trillion of off-balance sheet items being used to finance the AI capex boom.”

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026

But when urine from a different cat was introduced, their interest rose again, and they spent more time sniffing.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026

That was all it took for the sniffing of Old Rowdy to zero in.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

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Related Words

• detect
• inhale
• smell

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