Library / English Dictionary

SMELL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: smelt   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

The act of perceiving the odor of something

Synonyms:

smell; smelling

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("smell" is a kind of...):

perception; sensing (becoming aware of something via the senses)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "smell"):

sniff; snuff (sensing an odor by inhaling through the nose)

Derivation:

smell (emit an odor)

smell (inhale the odor of; perceive by the olfactory sense)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Any property detected by the olfactory system

Synonyms:

aroma; odor; odour; olfactory property; scent; smell

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Hypernyms ("smell" is a kind of...):

property (a basic or essential attribute shared by all members of a class)

Attribute:

odorous (having odor or a characteristic odor)

inodorous; odorless; odourless (having no odor)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "smell"):

bouquet; fragrance; fragrancy; redolence; sweetness (a pleasingly sweet olfactory property)

fetidness; foulness; malodorousness; rankness; stinkiness (the attribute of having a strong offensive smell)

muskiness (having the olfactory properties of musk)

rancidness (the property of being rancid)

Derivation:

smell (emit an odor)

smell (inhale the odor of; perceive by the olfactory sense)

smelly (offensively malodorous)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The faculty that enables us to distinguish scents

Synonyms:

olfaction; olfactory modality; sense of smell; smell

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("smell" is a kind of...):

modality; sense modality; sensory system (a particular sense)

exteroception (sensitivity to stimuli originating outside of the body)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "smell"):

nose (the sense of smell (especially in animals))

Derivation:

smell (emit an odor)

smell (inhale the odor of; perceive by the olfactory sense)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form

Example:

she loved the smell of roses

Synonyms:

odor; odour; olfactory perception; olfactory sensation; smell

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("smell" is a kind of...):

aesthesis; esthesis; sensation; sense datum; sense experience; sense impression (an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "smell"):

acridity (having an acrid smell)

fetor; foetor; malodor; malodour; mephitis; reek; stench; stink (a distinctive odor that is offensively unpleasant)

aroma; fragrance; perfume; scent (a distinctive odor that is pleasant)

scent (an odor left in passing by which a person or animal can be traced)

Derivation:

smell (emit an odor)

smell (smell bad)

smell (inhale the odor of; perceive by the olfactory sense)

Sense 5

Meaning:

The general atmosphere of a place or situation and the effect that it has on people

Example:

it had the smell of treason

Synonyms:

feel; feeling; flavor; flavour; look; smell; spirit; tone

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("smell" is a kind of...):

ambiance; ambience; atmosphere (a particular environment or surrounding influence)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "smell"):

Hollywood (a flashy vulgar tone or atmosphere believed to be characteristic of the American film industry)

Zeitgeist (the spirit of the time; the spirit characteristic of an age or generation)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Become aware of not through the senses but instinctively

Example:

smell out corruption

Synonyms:

sense; smell; smell out

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Hypernyms (to "smell" is one way to...):

perceive (become conscious of)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sense 2

Meaning:

Emit an odor

Example:

The soup smells good

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "smell" is one way to...):

cause to be perceived (have perceptible qualities)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "smell"):

smell (smell bad)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Something ----s Adjective/Noun
Somebody ----s Adjective

Sentence example:

The food does smell good

Also:

smell up (cause to smell bad; fill with a bad smell)

Derivation:

smell (the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form)

smell (the faculty that enables us to distinguish scents)

smell (any property detected by the olfactory system)

smell (the act of perceiving the odor of something)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Smell bad

Example:

He rarely washes, and he smells

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "smell" is one way to...):

smell (emit an odor)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "smell"):

reek; stink (smell badly and offensively)

salute (become noticeable)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s

Derivation:

smell (the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Inhale the odor of; perceive by the olfactory sense

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "smell" is one way to...):

comprehend; perceive (to become aware of through the senses)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "smell"):

sniff; whiff (perceive by inhaling through the nose)

nose; scent; wind (catch the scent of; get wind of)

snuff; snuffle (sniff or smell inquiringly)

get a noseful; get a whiff (smell strongly and intensely)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Sentence example:

The customs agents smell the bags for drugs

Derivation:

smell (the act of perceiving the odor of something)

smell (any property detected by the olfactory system)

smell (the faculty that enables us to distinguish scents)

smell (the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form)

smelling (the act of perceiving the odor of something)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Have an element suggestive (of something)

Example:

this passage smells of plagiarism

Synonyms:

reek; smack; smell

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "smell" is one way to...):

evoke; paint a picture; suggest (call to mind)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Credits

 Context examples: 

Clinical features may include facial pain and impairments of taste or smell.

(Olfactory Nerve Neoplasm, NCI Thesaurus)

A substance that gives off a smell.

(Odorant, NCI Dictionary)

A sight, sound, smell, taste, or touch that a person believes to be real but is not real.

(Hallucination, NCI Dictionary)

Smell may affect emotion, behavior, memory, and thought.

(Olfactory system, NCI Dictionary)

A series of events in which cells in the nose bind to scent-bearing molecules and send electrical signals to the brain where they are perceived as smells.

(Olfactory transduction, NCI Dictionary)

The very smell of it seemed life to me.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The smell of tar and salt was something new.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

A type of skin lesion that is marked by ulcerations (breaks on the skin or surface of an organ) and necrosis (death of living tissue) and that usually has a bad smell.

(Fungating lesion, NCI Dictionary)

Pleasant smelling compound found in many plants and released on wilting.

(Coumarin, NCI Thesaurus)

But how many different smells do you notice?

(Humans Can Identify More Than 1 Trillion Smells, NIH, US)