as in breezes
a slight or gentle movement of air
wafts carrying the scent of spring flowers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in hovers
to rest or move along the surface of a liquid or in the air
a feather wafted past us and settled on the grass
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wafts
Rebecca Norris, InStyle, 11 Apr. 2026
Banana pudding wafts with the green vanilla notes of pandan.
—Scott Hocker, TheWeek, 24 Mar. 2026
Losing the Great Salt Lake would therefore have dire economic consequences for the region, in addition to health threats as dust laden with heavy metals wafts off the lake bed and into neighborhoods.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 7 Mar. 2026
Artisanal, electric energy has occupied the grand bones of this intoxicating city, with young creatives animating the unbuttoned cafés and bars filling its old town’s squares—the air always hot and heavy with wafts of arancini and zucchini fritti.
—Rosalyn Wikeley, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026
Lemongrass wafts off a dish of lobster two ways.
—Restaurant Critic, San Francisco Chronicle, 2 Dec. 2025
Open the door to the Tumacacori Mesquite Sawmill gallery in the rural, rolling hills of Santa Cruz County, Arizona, an hour south of Tucson, and a soft aroma wafts out.
—Suzanne Wright, USA Today, 11 Nov. 2025
The scent of shorn wood, metal and instant coffee wafts through the air.
—Joanna Kakissis, NPR, 11 Nov. 2025
October’s crisp weather invites a pot of simmering chili to cook slowly on the stove, filling the kitchen with warmth and wafts of smoke and spice.
—Lynda Balslev, Mercury News, 24 Oct. 2025
Tim Parks, New Yorker, 11 Apr. 2026
On sunny days, the ocean breeze wafts off the beach and through the loungers and cabanas set just back from the sand.
—Tim Chester, Robb Report, 5 Mar. 2026
The sugary aroma wafts down Main Street, where artisans continue the century-old tradition of pouring, paddling, and slicing molten fudge into glossy, irresistible bricks.
—Christine Chitnis, Vogue, 24 Sep. 2025
Yes, everyone’s favorite subject on this very hot New York City day the trash smell wafts up to us.
—Fortune Editors, Fortune, 6 Aug. 2025
Noun
According to British Vogue, Kate arranged for wafts of Orange Blossom candles to fill the air of Westminster Abbey on her big day.
—Rebecca Norris, InStyle, 11 Apr. 2026
Banana pudding wafts with the green vanilla notes of pandan.
—Scott Hocker, TheWeek, 24 Mar. 2026
Losing the Great Salt Lake would therefore have dire economic consequences for the region, in addition to health threats as dust laden with heavy metals wafts off the lake bed and into neighborhoods.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 7 Mar. 2026
Artisanal, electric energy has occupied the grand bones of this intoxicating city, with young creatives animating the unbuttoned cafés and bars filling its old town’s squares—the air always hot and heavy with wafts of arancini and zucchini fritti.
—Rosalyn Wikeley, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026
Lemongrass wafts off a dish of lobster two ways.
—Restaurant Critic, San Francisco Chronicle, 2 Dec. 2025
Open the door to the Tumacacori Mesquite Sawmill gallery in the rural, rolling hills of Santa Cruz County, Arizona, an hour south of Tucson, and a soft aroma wafts out.
—Suzanne Wright, USA Today, 11 Nov. 2025
The scent of shorn wood, metal and instant coffee wafts through the air.
—Joanna Kakissis, NPR, 11 Nov. 2025
October’s crisp weather invites a pot of simmering chili to cook slowly on the stove, filling the kitchen with warmth and wafts of smoke and spice.
—Lynda Balslev, Mercury News, 24 Oct. 2025
Verb
From the big room beyond, where men are working with chisels and planes, wafts a powerful smell of wood glue.
—Tim Parks, New Yorker, 11 Apr. 2026
On sunny days, the ocean breeze wafts off the beach and through the loungers and cabanas set just back from the sand.
—Tim Chester, Robb Report, 5 Mar. 2026
The sugary aroma wafts down Main Street, where artisans continue the century-old tradition of pouring, paddling, and slicing molten fudge into glossy, irresistible bricks.
—Christine Chitnis, Vogue, 24 Sep. 2025
Yes, everyone’s favorite subject on this very hot New York City day the trash smell wafts up to us.
—Fortune Editors, Fortune, 6 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wafts
Noun
-
Willy’s older brother, Ben (Jonathan Cake, plummy-voiced and elegant, a cedar to Lane’s stunted apple tree), breezes in and out, always on the way to or from some impressive capital venture.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Partial clearing is expected midday before more showers in the late afternoon and evening that’ll be accompanied by increasing breezes.—
Anthony Edwards,
San Francisco Chronicle,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Around his head hovers a cluster of disembodied faces — creepy alt-Altmans, their expressions ranging from anger to open-mouthed woe.—
Cath Virginia,
The Verge,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Numbers began to skyrocket around the time of the Artemis II launch on April 1st, peaking at around 12,434 at time of writing— a huge jump against the game's standard average player count, which hovers around 3,000 to 4,000.—
Alan Bradley,
Space.com,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
At the top of this list is fernleaf acacia (Acacia baileyana), a wonderful small tree with bipinnate blue-grey leaves and fragrant yellow spherical flower puffs.—
Joshua Siskin,
Oc Register,
16 Apr. 2026
-
Prairie Smoke The small flowers of prairie smoke (Geum triflorum) are pretty, but the real show starts after the spring bloom when the flowers turn into feather-like seed heads resembling puffs of smoke.—
Nadia Hassani,
The Spruce,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
So Fasanara floats the cash, collects interest from the seller and directly assumes payment from the buying squad.—
Justin Birnbaum,
Sportico.com,
16 Apr. 2026
-
Just as Earth has two very different poles — the Antarctic south pole, marked by a massive continent, and the icy north pole, whose ice floats atop the waters of the Arctic ocean — so too does Saturn.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The boat sails from Genoa in complete darkness, a precaution against air raids.—
Marcy Thompson,
Scientific American,
16 Apr. 2026
-
The line sails year-round from Southern ports including Port Canaveral, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Galveston, and New Orleans.—
Linnea Bailey,
Southern Living,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Away from the city’s concrete and sounds, the scent of herbs drifts through the air and light pours in from the floor-to-ceiling windows.—
Travel + Leisure Editors,
Travel + Leisure,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Across millions of interactions, the system drifts towards flattery.—
Tim Requarth,
Longreads,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wafts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wafts. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
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