olfaction
Americannoun
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the act of smelling.
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the sense of smell.
noun
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the sense of smell
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the act or function of smelling
Etymology
Origin of olfaction
1840–50; < Latin olfact ( us ) past participle of olfacere to smell ( see olfactory) + -ion
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.
The physical co-location found between olfaction and sight that Mormann’s team found in the olfactory cortex may be part of the physical apparatus behind such crossmodality.
From Salon • Feb. 15, 2025
In olfaction, those under-400 olfactory receptors combine, in ways that have been mysterious to researchers, to produce the staggering variety of odors we can perceive.
From Salon • Jan. 5, 2025
At its core, the human sense of smell, or olfaction, is a complex chemical detection system in constant operation.
From Science Daily • May 15, 2024
The interdisciplinary group of experts in olfaction, psychology, ecology, public health, atmospheric science and other fields are based at institutions in the U.S., the U.K.,
From Science Daily • May 15, 2024
The theories to explain olfaction are as numerous and complex as those for immunologic sensing.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
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.
