as in scents
the quality of a thing that makes it perceptible to the sense organs in the nose
we took a good sniff of the sauce, trying to guess its ingredients
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sniffs
Ganesh Marín, The Dial, 7 Oct. 2025
From pet stores to hardware stores (with aisles as long as some street blocks), your dog will get in plenty of sniffs, pets, and some light exercise.
—Kelsey Monstrola, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025
Keith Phipps, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
In the clip, an elderly woman stands holding a bowl and a spoon beside a massive brown bear that sniffs her feet.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2025
The picture shows them on the floor together with Comet fully exposing his belly, a sign of trust, while Dottie sniffs him.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025
Lina sniffs, stamps her feet in the snow to make her own set of giant prints to frighten this creature.
—Hazlitt, 8 Oct. 2025
On play two, Moore sniffs out the reverse from deep alignment, takes a sharp angle to the ball and makes the open-field stop.
—Dane Brugler, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
In one recent video, Stella sniffs Mia’s infant daughter and then presses the button for her name.
—Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 12 Aug. 2025
Noun
Just a few kilometers away, a black bear sniffs and studies the device tethering it to a tree.
—Ganesh Marín, The Dial, 7 Oct. 2025
From pet stores to hardware stores (with aisles as long as some street blocks), your dog will get in plenty of sniffs, pets, and some light exercise.
—Kelsey Monstrola, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
The first is Christopher Walken as Gabriel, a mean-spirited angel who sniffs and licks crime scenes and inspects children’s teeth for reasons that sort of make sense within the movie.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
In the clip, an elderly woman stands holding a bowl and a spoon beside a massive brown bear that sniffs her feet.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2025
The picture shows them on the floor together with Comet fully exposing his belly, a sign of trust, while Dottie sniffs him.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025
Lina sniffs, stamps her feet in the snow to make her own set of giant prints to frighten this creature.
—Hazlitt, 8 Oct. 2025
On play two, Moore sniffs out the reverse from deep alignment, takes a sharp angle to the ball and makes the open-field stop.
—Dane Brugler, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
In one recent video, Stella sniffs Mia’s infant daughter and then presses the button for her name.
—Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sniffs
Noun
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What to Do The best way to fall in love with this beautiful city is to explore it by foot, and immerse yourself in the sights, sounds, and scents that make each neighborhood unique.—
Emily Baldwin,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Nov. 2025
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Give me all the fruity, gourmand and feminine scents galore.—
Kimberly Wilson,
Essence,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Open air is what [Texas] smells like.—
Noor Lobad,
Footwear News,
7 Nov. 2025
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Both agree that even the rain, somehow, smells different in this country.—
Elizabeth B. Kim,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Your family will come home to delicious aromas wafting through the house from this classic slow-cooker Mississippi Pot Roast.—
Nellah Bailey McGough,
Southern Living,
4 Nov. 2025
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Tea lovers will love indulging in the flavors and aromas of these 24 black, green, oolong, white, and herbal teas from Vahdam Tea.—
Molly Blanco,
Better Homes & Gardens,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sniffs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sniffs. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
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