Main Entry: ¹smell

Pronunciation: \ˈsmel\

Function: verb

Inflected Form(s): smelled \ˈsmeld\ or smelt \ˈsmelt\; smell·ing

Etymology: Middle English

Date: 12th century

transitive verb 1 : to perceive the odor or scent of through stimuli affecting the olfactory nerves : get the odor or scent of with the nose
2 : to detect or become aware of as if by the sense of smell <I smell trouble>
3 : to emit the odor ofintransitive verb 1 : to exercise the sense of smell
2 a (1) : to have an odor or scent (2) : to have a characteristic aura or atmosphere : smack <the accounts…seemed to me to smell of truth — R. S. Bourne>; also : seem, appear <the story didn't smell right> b (1) : to have an offensive odor : stink (2) : to be of bad or questionable quality <all this from the moral point of view smells — A. F. Wills>

— smell·er noun

— smell a rat : to have a suspicion of something wrong

— smell blood : to sense an opponent's weakness or vulnerability

— smell the roses : to enjoy or savor life