scent

American  

[sent] / sɛnt /

noun

• scents
  plural

1. 

   a distinctive odor, especially when agreeable.

   the scent of roses.

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

3. a track or trail as or as if indicated by such an odor.

   The dogs lost the scent and the prisoner escaped.

4. perfume.

5. the sense of smell.

   a remarkably keen scent.

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

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verb (used with object)

• scents,
  present (3rd person singular)
• scented,
  past participle,  past
• scenting
  present participle

1. to perceive or recognize by or as if by the sense of smell.

   to scent trouble.

   Synonyms:

   sniff, smell

2. to fill with an odor; perfume.

verb (used without object)

• scents,
  present (3rd person singular)
• scented,
  past participle,  past
• scenting
  present participle

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

scent British  

/ sɛnt /

noun

1. a distinctive smell, esp a pleasant one

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

3. a trail, clue, or guide

4. an instinctive ability for finding out or detecting

5. another word (esp Brit) for perfume

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verb

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

2. (tr) to have a suspicion of; detect

   I scent foul play

3. (tr) to fill with odour or fragrance

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

5. to smell (at)

   the dog scented the air

scent Idioms  

1. see throw off, def. 3.

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Synonym Usage

See odor.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• scentlessness
  noun
• outscent
  verb (used with object)
• nonscented
  adjective
• overscented
  adjective
• scented
  adjective
• scentless
  adjective
• unscented
  adjective
• well-scented
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• scents
  plural

Participles

• scenting
  present
• scented
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• scent
  simple
• scents
  simple
• have scented
  perfect
• has scented
  perfect
• am scenting
  progressive
• are scenting
  progressive
• is scenting
  progressive
• have been scenting
  perfect progressive
• has been scenting
  perfect progressive

Past

• scented
  simple
• had scented
  perfect
• was scenting
  progressive
• were scenting
  progressive
• had been scenting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will scent
  simple
• will have scented
  perfect
• will be scenting
  progressive
• will have been scenting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

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

Explanation

A scent is a smell. Every house has a particular scent that is recognizable to people as belonging to that house. Scent comes from the Latin sentire meaning "to feel, perceive, sense." The word was originally used in reference to hunting dogs, who track down animals by their scent. If you "pick up a scent," then you have a clue about something. If you wear a perfume, then you leave your scent in the air as you pass. Use scent instead of smell if you want to talk about a distinctively nice odor, like the scent of fresh-cut grass.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scent scents scented scenting

If a scent is constantly evolving, how can another animal still determine who originally left it?

From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026

"Conversely, the sweeter milk chocolate scent acts more like a hedonic reward cue, enhancing training volume by creating a highly pleasant sensory environment rather than by shifting basic metabolic hunger signals."

From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026

Allison Anderman’s breaking point was a slow-moving Lyft to Miami from the airport in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The scent inside gave her a headache and made her nauseous.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

Dogs have around 300 million scent receptors, compared to about five million in humans.

From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026

It is strange to be out this early, but the familiar scent of almond sweets that perfumes our town calms me.

From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar

That pattern suggests that cats may retain long-term memories of particular urine scents.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026

“It scents closets and laundry rooms,” she said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

Nadira Goffe argues that watching the film in 4DX—which features, among other things, scents, moving chairs, and sprays of water—is the superior way to experience the epic adventure.

From Slate ● Jul. 28, 2026

Despite being marketed as an eau de parfum for men, the fragrance’s notes leaned more toward typically unisex scents.

From Salon ● May 27, 2026

Soon they came to a deep gash in the earth, from which rose the scents of water and of things that grew in rich mud.

From "Pax" by Sara Pennypacker

Delicious food — Jamaican patties, raspberry tarts, Nigerian-style goat, salmon tamales — scented the streets.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026

The back seat can be a special kind of hell in the cold of winter or on hot summer days, when windows are up and the only oxygen is scented.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

However, listing images of the property show that it is now completely empty—with not a single Juicy Couture sweatsuit or scented candle in sight, suggesting that Madison has vacated the home completely.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026

They reminisce about the brown bread: those sweet, dark little wheat loaves scented with honey, molasses, cocoa powder and espresso.

From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026

The lady bends her scented head to whisper.

From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman

The Japanese accomplish subtle scenting with nioi-bukuro, breathable sachets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 14, 2026

The moves in the long-term government bonds are a warning sign of bond sharks scenting some blood in the water.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2025

Signs that your feline friend is bonded to you include scenting by rubbing their head on you, showing their belly, blinking and letting you get close.

From Scientific American ● Dec. 21, 2022

In the summer, the hardliners struck, scenting weakness in a man now abandoned by many liberal allies.

From Reuters ● Aug. 30, 2022

The adults were looking around, and then the woman put the monkey down, and it began to cast this way and that on the grass as if it were scenting or looking for footprints.

From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman

Related Words

• aura
• bouquet
• essence
• odor
• perfume
• spice
• whiff