smell
Americanverb (used with object)
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to perceive the odor or scent of through the nose by means of the olfactory nerves; inhale the odor of.
I smell something burning.
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to test by the sense of smell.
She smelled the meat to see if it was fresh.
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to perceive, detect, or discover by shrewdness or sagacity.
The detective smelled foul play.
verb (used without object)
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to perceive something by its odor or scent.
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to search or investigate (followed by around orabout ).
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to give off or have an odor or scent.
Do the yellow roses smell?
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to give out an offensive odor; stink.
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to have a particular odor (followed byof ).
My hands smell of fish.
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to have a trace or suggestion (followed byof ).
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Informal. to be of inferior quality; stink.
The play is good, but the direction smells.
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Informal. to have the appearance or a suggestion of guilt or corruption.
They may be honest, but the whole situation smells.
noun
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the sense of smell; faculty of smelling.
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the quality of a thing that is or may be smelled; odor; scent.
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a trace or suggestion.
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an act or instance of smelling.
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a pervading appearance, character, quality, or influence.
the smell of money.
verb phrase
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smell out to look for or detect as if by smelling; search out.
to smell out enemy spies.
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smell up to fill with an offensive odor; stink up.
The garbage smelled up the yard.
idioms
verb
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(tr) to perceive the scent or odour of (a substance) by means of the olfactory nerves
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(copula) to have a specified smell; appear to the sense of smell to be
the beaches smell of seaweed
some tobacco smells very sweet
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to emit an odour (of)
the park smells of flowers
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(intr) to emit an unpleasant odour; stink
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to detect through shrewdness or instinct
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(intr) to have or use the sense of smell; sniff
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to give indications (of)
he smells of money
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(intr; foll by around, about, etc) to search, investigate, or pry
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(copula) to be or seem to be untrustworthy or corrupt
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to detect something suspicious
noun
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that sense (olfaction) by which scents or odours are perceived
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anything detected by the sense of smell; odour; scent
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a trace or indication
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the act or an instance of smelling
Synonym Usage
See odor.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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smellsimple
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smellssimple
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have smelledperfect
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have smeltperfect
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has smelledperfect
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has smeltperfect
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am smellingprogressive
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are smellingprogressive
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is smellingprogressive
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have been smellingperfect progressive
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has been smellingperfect progressive
Past
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smelledsimple
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smeltsimple
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had smelledperfect
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had smeltperfect
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was smellingprogressive
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were smellingprogressive
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had been smellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of smell
First recorded in 1125–75; early Middle English smell, smull (noun), smellen, smullen (verb); origin uncertain.
Explanation
Smell is one of your five senses—the one you use your nose for. Dogs have such a sharp sense of smell that they can sniff out things like explosives and drugs. Your sense of smell gives you important information, like "this milk is sour," or "I need a shower." An individual odor or scent is also a smell, and to perceive it with your nose is to smell it. If someone says, "You smell," it's not a compliment—what they mean is, "You don't smell good." While experts believe that smell has an Old English root, it was never recorded.
Vocabulary lists containing smell
Smell Words
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Vocabulary from Readings 1, Unit 4
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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 smell of sweet milk hung in the air, mixed with the earthy musk of manure.
From Salon • Jun. 22, 2026
Campos said the family lives about two blocks from the warehouse and could smell smoke inside their home.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 21, 2026
They might smell wonderful and taste delicious, but they are literally deadly.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 21, 2026
“We live in nice homes, I don’t want to go to a dump in Vegas and smell cigarette smoke from 1974,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 19, 2026
As I kneeled next to him near the stain in the snow, the smell was wrong for what I thought it was.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
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.
