scent

[ sent ]

/ sɛnt /

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See synonyms for: scent / scented / scents / scentless on Thesaurus.com

noun

a distinctive odor, especially when agreeable: the scent of roses.

an odor left in passing, by means of which an animal or person may be traced.

a track or trail as or as if indicated by such an odor: The dogs lost the scent and the prisoner escaped.

perfume.

the sense of smell: a remarkably keen scent.

small pieces of paper dropped by the hares in the game of hare and hounds.

verb (used with object)

to perceive or recognize by or as if by the sense of smell: to scent trouble.

to fill with an odor; perfume.

verb (used without object)

to hunt by the sense of smell, as a hound.

OTHER WORDS FOR scent

7 smell, sniff.

See synonyms for scent on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of scent

First recorded in 1325–75; (verb) earlier sent,Middle English senten, from Middle French sentir “to smell,” from Latin sentīre, “to feel”; (noun) Middle English, derivative of the verb Cf. sense

synonym study for scent

1. See odor.

OTHER WORDS FROM scent

scentless, adjectivescent·less·ness, nounnon·scent·ed, adjectiveoutscent, verb (used with object)

o·ver·scent·ed, adjectiveun·scent·ed, adjectivewell-scented, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH scent

cent, scents , sense

Words nearby scent

scene-stealer, scenic, scenic railway, scenic reserve, scenography, scent, scented orchid, scent gland, scent mark, scepter, sceptic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use scent in a sentence

This Portland company offers a variety of scents, but get the vanilla sugar if you want to smell like a super-refreshed cupcake.
This Weekend: You’ll Never Bathe the Same Way Again|Joshua Eferighe|August 21, 2020|Ozy
The finding, described August 12 in Nature, could inform new ways of controlling or preventing locust swarms, potentially by attracting the insects with their own scents.
A single molecule may entice normally solitary locusts to form massive swarms|Jonathan Lambert|August 12, 2020|Science News
If we can understand how the brain processes individual scents as electrical information, it might be possible to reverse-engineer the smell of bubbling lasagna and deliver it straight to your brain.
A Highway to Smell: How Scientists Used Light to Incept Smell in Mice|Shelly Fan|July 1, 2020|Singularity Hub
After 10 minutes, the researchers gave each bee the same lemony scent followed by sugar water.
Pesticides can have long-term impact on bumblebee learning|Alison Pearce Stevens|May 18, 2020|Science News For Students

They are snaking back and forth in search of the scent that will get them their ball.
Conservation is going to the dogs|Alison Pearce Stevens|April 2, 2020|Science News For Students
Selling off the extras, I saw my neighbor marvel at the scent and murmur that he wished he could afford one.
A Million Ways to Die in Prison|Daniel Genis|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He even claims that hen partridges conceive just by smelling the scent of males.
Why Aristotle Deserves A Posthumous Nobel|Nick Romeo|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This is not the boisterous version of Pacino, the one we saw as Tony Montana in Scarface or as Frank Slade in Scent of a Woman.
Al Pacino Does What He Wants to Do: 'The Humbling,' Scorsese, and That 'Scarface' Remake|Alex Suskind|September 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A local perfume maker even produced a special scent for men and women named after the rocket, M75.
Hamas Has Already Won Its Rocket War With Israel|Eli Lake|July 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Behind the counter is the pit, perfuming the room (and your clothes) with the swirling, come-hither scent of beef and smoke.
The Texas Church of Beef|Jane & Michael Stern|April 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But such refuge, he knew, could avail him nothing if the bear should scent him out and search for him.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
He did not know what the scent was, but it smelled rich and artificial, and he disliked to associate it with his new friend.
Rosemary in Search of a Father|C. N. Williamson
Her expression was still petrified, except that she might have had the scent of blood in her slightly dilating nostrils.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
From the garden there rose to her nostrils the delicate scent of some hidden flower that gave its best gift to the darkness.
Bella Donna|Robert Hichens
I might have put him on a false scent, just as cleverly and unsuspiciously as I dare say he could put me; but I've not done it.
Elster's Folly|Mrs. Henry Wood

British Dictionary definitions for scent

scent

/ (sɛnt) /

noun

a distinctive smell, esp a pleasant one

a smell left in passing, by which a person or animal may be traced

a trail, clue, or guide

an instinctive ability for finding out or detecting

another word (esp Brit) for perfume

verb

(tr) to recognize or be aware of by or as if by the smell

(tr) to have a suspicion of; detectI scent foul play

(tr) to fill with odour or fragrance

(intr) (of hounds, etc) to hunt by the sense of smell

to smell (at)the dog scented the air

Derived forms of scent

scented, adjectivescentless, adjectivescentlessness, noun

Word Origin for scent

C14: from Old French sentir to sense, from Latin sentīre to feel; see sense

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with scent

scent

see throw off, def. 3.

scent

OTHER WORDS FOR scent

Origin of scent

synonym study for scent

OTHER WORDS FROM scent

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH scent

Words nearby scent

Words related to scent

How to use scent in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for scent

Derived forms of scent

Word Origin for scent

Other Idioms and Phrases with scent