sniff at
phrasal verb
sniffed at; sniffing at; sniffs at
: to show dislike or disapproval of (something) especially because one thinks it is not important or worthy of respect
Some people sniff at the idea of using fake flowers.
It's not a big profit, but it's not to be sniffed at.
Your accomplishment is nothing to sniff at.
Examples of sniff at in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The chance to further increase commercial income wouldn’t be sniffed at either.
—
Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2025
But as Drew points out 17% of five million businesses isn’t anything to sniff at.
—Brandon Kochkodin, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
But Josie doesn't give up, following the other puppy around, sniffing at it curiously—and soon the duo are playing together, jumping, rolling and chasing each other around the room, getting more excited and boisterous as the time goes on.
—Jason D. Greenblatt, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Apr. 2025
The seats in a Dolby Cinema are also very comfortable, which is not to be sniffed at.
—Benny Har-Even, Forbes.com, 31 Mar. 2025
It's got a lot going for it, both in style and substance, and 103 minutes of genre-defying thrills that refuse to pigeonhole itself, both through style and content, is not to be sniffed at for a feature debut.
—Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 2025
While American wine doesn’t have the same storied history as, say, Bordeaux or the Rheingau, our viticultural areas are nothing to sniff at.
—Alessandra Amodio, Travel + Leisure, 2 Mar. 2025
An entire realm of talented pianists were not given enough ado and were sometimes sniffed at.
—The New Yorker, 5 Mar. 2025
Back to back European Cup wins are not be sniffed at (only two UK clubs have ever done it) and the leap from second tier to B2B winners in Europe will never be repeated.
—Paul Taylor, The Athletic, 18 Feb. 2025
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Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2025
But as Drew points out 17% of five million businesses isn’t anything to sniff at.
—Brandon Kochkodin, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
But Josie doesn't give up, following the other puppy around, sniffing at it curiously—and soon the duo are playing together, jumping, rolling and chasing each other around the room, getting more excited and boisterous as the time goes on.
—Jason D. Greenblatt, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Apr. 2025
The seats in a Dolby Cinema are also very comfortable, which is not to be sniffed at.
—Benny Har-Even, Forbes.com, 31 Mar. 2025
It's got a lot going for it, both in style and substance, and 103 minutes of genre-defying thrills that refuse to pigeonhole itself, both through style and content, is not to be sniffed at for a feature debut.
—Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 2025
While American wine doesn’t have the same storied history as, say, Bordeaux or the Rheingau, our viticultural areas are nothing to sniff at.
—Alessandra Amodio, Travel + Leisure, 2 Mar. 2025
An entire realm of talented pianists were not given enough ado and were sometimes sniffed at.
—The New Yorker, 5 Mar. 2025
Back to back European Cup wins are not be sniffed at (only two UK clubs have ever done it) and the leap from second tier to B2B winners in Europe will never be repeated.
—Paul Taylor, The Athletic, 18 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sniff at.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sniff%20at. Accessed 24 May. 2025.
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