1
a
: a quick puff or slight gust especially of air, odor, gas, smoke, or spray
b
: an inhalation of odor, gas, or smoke
c
: a slight puffing or whistling sound
2
: a slight trace or indication
a whiff of scandal
3
whiffed; whiffing; whiffs
1
: to move with or as if with a puff of air
3
: to inhale an odor
1
2
: fan sense 8
whiffed three batters
Examples of whiff in a Sentence
Noun
I got a whiff of new paint when I entered the room.
I detected a whiff of sarcasm in her voice.
The pitcher had eight whiffs during the game.
Verb
He whiffed a strong odor of perfume.
The golfer nearly whiffed the shot.
The golfer nearly whiffed on the shot.
Recent Examples on the Web
Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 6 Sep. 2025
Members of Sewell’s team made sure everyone had a whiff of the new fragrances by handing out samples to the guests standing outside.
—Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025
Alex Krutchik, Miami Herald, 6 Sep. 2025
Trout has also struck out in 29 of his last 81 plate appearances (36%), and in the past week he’s whiffed in 14 of his last 24 trips to the plate.
—Jeff Fletcher, Oc Register, 31 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for whiff
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Noun
Wacha had command of six pitches and generated 40 swings alongside 12 whiffs, per Baseball Savant.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 6 Sep. 2025
Members of Sewell’s team made sure everyone had a whiff of the new fragrances by handing out samples to the guests standing outside.
—Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
The Marlins whiffed on 10 of his sweepers Saturday.
—Alex Krutchik, Miami Herald, 6 Sep. 2025
Trout has also struck out in 29 of his last 81 plate appearances (36%), and in the past week he’s whiffed in 14 of his last 24 trips to the plate.
—Jeff Fletcher, Oc Register, 31 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for whiff
Cite this Entry
“Whiff.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whiff. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
whiff
1 of 2 noun
ˈhwif 
ˈwif
1
: a quick puff or slight gust
a whiff of air
2
: a small quantity of odor, gas, or smoke that is breathed in
whiff
2 of 2 verb1
: to blow out or away in small amounts
2
: to breathe in an odor
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