whiff
1 Americannoun
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a trace or hint.
a whiff of scandal.
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a slight trace of odor or smell.
a whiff of onions.
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a slight gust or puff of wind, air, vapor, smoke, or the like.
a whiff of fresh air.
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a single inhalation or exhalation of air, tobacco smoke, or the like.
I tried smoking once, but had a coughing fit after the first whiff and gave up.
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a slight outburst.
a little whiff of temper.
verb (used without object)
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whiffs,
present (3rd person singular)
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whiffed,
past participle, past
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whiffing
present participle
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to blow or come in light puffs, such as of wind or smoke.
A breeze whiffed through the clearing, cooling our faces.
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to inhale or exhale in light puffs, such as when smoking tobacco.
She was sitting on the porch, whiffing on a cigarette.
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to move swiftly through the air, creating a slight breeze or swishing sound.
The ball whiffed past my head and into the net.
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Baseball.
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to swing without hitting the ball.
He’s whiffed at 30 percent of pitches this season.
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(of a batter) to strike out by swinging at and missing the pitch charged as the third strike.
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Informal. to fail in an effort or get something wrong.
This economic think tank has whiffed on every prediction for the last decade.
verb (used with object)
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whiffs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
whiffed,
past participle, past
-
whiffing
present participle
-
to blow or drive with light puffs, as the wind does.
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to inhale or exhale (air, tobacco smoke, etc.) in light puffs.
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to smoke (a pipe, cigar, etc.).
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Baseball. (of a pitcher) to cause (a batter) to swing at a pitch and miss or to strike out.
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Informal. to fail at or in; get wrong.
The book had a great beginning, but lost steam as it progressed, and totally whiffed the ending.
He’s whiffed every opportunity we gave him.
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to catch a slight scent or hint of; sniff; smell.
I broke a small branch off the lilac bush and whiffed the blooms as I walked.
noun
noun
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a passing odour
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a brief gentle gust of air
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a single inhalation or exhalation from the mouth or nose
verb
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to come, convey, or go in whiffs; puff or waft
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to take in or breathe out (tobacco smoke, air, etc)
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(tr) to sniff or smell
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slang (intr) to have an unpleasant smell; stink
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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whiffsimple
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whiffssimple
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have whiffedperfect
-
has whiffedperfect
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am whiffingprogressive
-
are whiffingprogressive
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is whiffingprogressive
-
have been whiffingperfect progressive
-
has been whiffingperfect progressive
Past
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whiffedsimple
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had whiffedperfect
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was whiffingprogressive
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were whiffingprogressive
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had been whiffingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of whiff1
First recorded in 1600–10; origin uncertain; perhaps a variant of Middle English wef, wef(f)e “bad smell, stench”
Origin of whiff2
First recorded in 1705–15; origin uncertain
Explanation
A whiff can mean the hint of something you smell. When you drive past the sewage treatment plant and suddenly roll up your car windows, it's usually because you've gotten a whiff of the plant's special odor. Whiff can be used as either a noun or verb, and it implies a brief or small puff or sniff. A person can have "a whiff of the exotic," which means they are living like the rest of us, but there is a little something about them that seems foreign or different. Sometimes, of course, odors are so overpowering that a small sniff is all you need: "Take a whiff of this," your friend might say to you, holding out a carton of sour milk. In that case, one whiff will be more than enough.
Vocabulary lists containing whiff
The Nose Knows: Olfactory Vocabulary
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100 SAT words Beginning with W,X,Y, and Z
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Smell Words
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
“There’s nothing like attractive real yields and a whiff of slower growth to shift the narrative and spur a renewed bid into rates,” said Melson at Natixis.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
There is much work to do in defence, for sure, but they can do that work from a position of strength - with the whiff of an extra £40m in their nostrils.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
If every Miyazaki movie has a whiff of biographical relevance, one might see “Kiki’s Delivery Service” as his statement of creative purpose and motivation.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026
While “Best and Last” is a whiff, I can forgive this band of bozos’ urge to make it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
And all the way through, I was living in constant terror that one of the witches in the back row was going to get a whiff of my presence through those special nose-holes of hers.
From "The Witches" by Roald Dahl
The laughs keep coming, especially when a little bot in a soccer jersey whiffs a kick and splats on its back.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
Despite those whiffs of corruption, the deal could let the Department of Defense acquire shares in NABEP, the Wall Street Journal reports.
From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2026
In referencing punk culture, Gyllenhaal whiffs her mark, which is somehow even more punk.
From Salon ● Mar. 8, 2026
Snell racked up 19 whiffs on Saturday, tied for third-most by a Dodgers pitcher in a game this season.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2025
Why did some leave whiffs of clouds in their wake and others didn’t?
From "Amal Unbound" by Aisha Saeed
But it turned out they whiffed on him—and lost their own star in the process.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026
Howden had a chance to double the lead less than six minutes before the second intermission, but he whiffed trying to bat a loose puck in an open net from the right side.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 5, 2026
In their mutual aim for a modern twist on a timeless classic, both the star-studded, multi-million dollar Apple TV+ movie and the low-budget indie comedy whiffed it entirely.
From Salon ● Dec. 24, 2025
In fairness, Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch peppered Patterson with favorable softballs, some of which the attorney bafflingly whiffed.
From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2024
The arm dissolved into a gray mass, then whiffed out of existence.
From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner
And Jude isn’t above including a mocking slow-motion shot of a spoiled French boy totally whiffing a soccer kick.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026
Few things get GMs fired faster than whiffing on quarterbacks, which means six of them are on the clock.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 25, 2024
Of the 27 strikes on the pitch, Berrios got nine called strikes while Seattle hitters swung at it 18 times, whiffing on nine, fouling off four and putting five balls in play.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 8, 2024
The Commanders have a need at the position after whiffing on veteran William Jackson III, who was released last season despite signing a three-year, $40.5 million contract in 2021.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 6, 2023
They shut the door and talked quietly about the whiffing incident.
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
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.
