Sniff is an English word with synonyms like smell or snuff. Below you'll find 10+ example sentences showing how it's used in practice.
Sniff in a sentence
Related words
Sniff meaning
- To make a short, audible inhalation, through the nose, as when smelling something.
- To say (something) while sniffing, such as in case of illness or unhappiness, or in contempt.
- To perceive vaguely.
Using Sniff
- The main meaning on this page is: To make a short, audible inhalation, through the nose, as when smelling something. | To say (something) while sniffing, such as in case of illness or unhappiness, or in contempt. | To perceive vaguely.
- Useful related words include: smell, snuff, smelling, whiff.
- In the example corpus, sniff often appears in combinations such as: to sniff, sniff out, sniff at.
Context around Sniff
- Average sentence length in these examples: 23.1 words
- Position in the sentence: 3 start, 8 middle, 9 end
- Sentence types: 19 statements, 1 questions, 0 exclamations
Corpus analysis for Sniff
- In this selection, "sniff" usually appears near the end of the sentence. The average example has 23.1 words, and this corpus slice is mostly made up of statements.
- Around the word, suv, good, help, test and down stand out and add context to how "sniff" is used.
- Recognizable usage signals include a gentle sniff as the and a good sniff. That gives this page its own corpus information beyond isolated example sentences.
- By corpus frequency, "sniff" sits close to words such as acm, anatomical and arbitrage, which helps place it inside the broader word index.
Example types with sniff
The same corpus examples are grouped by length and sentence type, making it easier to see the contexts in which the word appears:
Brighton were building, they just needed another sniff on goal. (10 words)
Dogs who sniff for drugs and weapons are notoriously inaccurate. (10 words)
I don't think we're going to give England a sniff. (12 words)
Before going blind Kai was used to help sniff out flammable liquids at fire scenes once blazes were extinguished to see if accelerants had been used and arson committed in a role that meant he relied on his nose just as much as his eyes. (45 words)
I hold the bundle to my face and take a nostalgic sniff of newsprint, then deposit it in front of Nyx’s bedroom door, where a poster of a glowering James Dean guards against forceful entry. (36 words)
Lucy recorded the clip as part of a paid advert for Primark and Sushi can be seen giving Sonny's face a gentle sniff as the tot modelled baby clothes from the high street chain. (35 words)
MC: Saints dominated the game, I don't think they had much of a sniff of the try line? (19 words)
Example sentences (20)
All-wheel-drive, dual motor examples of the Lyriq are set to begin deliveries later this year, but those supposedly don’t pass the arcane SUV sniff test, either.
And so but existing royalties will always sniff at them and see if there's an opportunity there.
As in: Lady Hallett, presiding, kept calling short adjournments, quite possibly to clutch hold of the sal volatile bottle and give it a good sniff.
Authorities pored over cellphone data and social media accounts to sniff out 22 people whom they have charged with being Snapchat smugglers.
Before going blind Kai was used to help sniff out flammable liquids at fire scenes once blazes were extinguished to see if accelerants had been used and arson committed in a role that meant he relied on his nose just as much as his eyes.
Brighton were building, they just needed another sniff on goal.
But the No.9 didn't get a sniff at St Johnstone even after Danilo's injury.
Dogs who sniff for drugs and weapons are notoriously inaccurate.
Gerda doesn’t seem to mind, as long as she has something to sniff.
He stroked his chocolate, he flapped it, he made Gardner sniff it, he flanked it.
I don't think we're going to give England a sniff.
If there's one thing I can sniff out a mile away, it's a bad property valuation – and this has to be one of the worst.
I hold the bundle to my face and take a nostalgic sniff of newsprint, then deposit it in front of Nyx’s bedroom door, where a poster of a glowering James Dean guards against forceful entry.
Just because Louisiana is better known for its swamps doesn't mean the beaches are anything to sniff at.
Lucy recorded the clip as part of a paid advert for Primark and Sushi can be seen giving Sonny's face a gentle sniff as the tot modelled baby clothes from the high street chain.
MC: Saints dominated the game, I don't think they had much of a sniff of the try line?
Rep. Bryan Steil, chair of the House Administration Committee, said of the charge: 'Bowman's excuse does not pass the sniff test.
Rival retailer Morrisons said in January it would get rid of use-by dates on 90% of its own-brand milk and encourage its customers to "use a sniff test".
The 25-year-old right-back barely gave Fulham a sniff down his flank, not being dribbled past once, and was heavily involved in United's attacks.
The public got a sniff of the fight between the celebrities when CDQ slammed Burna online on March 3, 2021, of being too full of himself for disrespecting Obafemi Martins.
Common combinations with sniff
These word pairs occur most frequently in English texts:
- to sniff 30×
- sniff out 28×
- sniff at 13×
- sniff it 7×
- sniff of 7×
- and sniff 7×
- can sniff 6×
- sniff and 6×
- sniff test 4×
- the sniff 3×