whiff

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++

Related topics: Odours

whiff /wɪf/ noun [countable]  1  COSMELLa very slight smell of something 一股淡淡的气味whiff of a whiff of tobacco 一股烟草味get/catch a whiff of something As she walked past, I caught a whiff of her perfume. 她走过时，我闻到一股淡淡的香水味。► see thesaurus at smell2  a whiff of danger/adventure/freedom etc LITTLE/NOT MUCHa slight sign that something dangerous, exciting etc might happen 危险/冒险/自由等的些微迹象 The whiff of danger filled her with excitement. 些许的危险让她感到很刺激。

Examples from the Corpus

whiff• As I turned out the lights, I caught a whiff of the intense fragrance of hyacinths.• Snow was involved in a whiff of controversy about some experimental results obtained in the 1930s.• After a few minutes, they were ordered to pull their masks back and take a whiff.• A sniff of tea, a whiff of biscuits, and there would soon be a crowd.• They further confused the tone of a piece that had about it the whiff of 1970s radical agitprop.• Jaq smelled the whiff of genetic pollution.• The raindrops are of the big, splashy variety, complete with whiffs of wild winds and churned seas.whiff of• a whiff of smokeOrigin whiff (1500-1600) From the sound of a light movement of air carrying a smell

whiff nounChinese  

Corpus very slight smell a of something

whiff
whiff /wɪf/ noun [countable]1. a very slight smell of something
    whiff of
    a whiff of tobacco
    get/catch a whiff of something
    As she walked past, I caught a whiff of her perfume.
2. a whiff of danger/adventure/freedom etc a slight sign that something dangerous, exciting etc might happen:
    The whiff of danger filled her with excitement.
     

THESAURUS

   ▪ smell something that you can recognize by breathing in through your nose: the smell from the kitchen | What’s that awful smell? | the sweet smell of roses
   ▪ whiff something that you smell for a short time: He caught a whiff of her perfume. | a whiff of apple blossom
   ▪ scent a smell – used especially about the pleasant smell from flowers, plants, or fruit. Also used about the smell left by an animal: The rose had a beautiful scent. | Cats use their scent to mark their territory. | the sharp, dying scent of autumn | the heady scent (=strong scent)of magnolias
   ▪ fragrance/perfume a pleasant smell, especially from flowers, plants, or fruit. Fragrance and perfume are more formal than scent: the sweet perfume of the orange blossoms | Each mango has its own special fragrance.
   ▪ aroma formal a pleasant smell from food or coffee: the aroma of fresh coffee | The kitchen was filled with the aroma of mince pies.
   ▪ odour British English, odor American English formal an unpleasant smell: An unpleasant odour was coming from the dustbins. | the odor of stale tobacco smoke
   ▪ pong British English informal an unpleasant smell: What’s that horrible pong?
   ▪ stink/stench a very strong and unpleasant smell: I couldn’t get rid of the stink of sweat. | The toilet gave off a terrible stench.