noun Uncommon

whiff

wihf

Whiff (noun) means a brief smell carried through the air, or a light gust of air. Example: “A whiff of fresh bread drifted out of the bakery door.”

noun

A brief smell carried through the air, or a light gust of air.

"A whiff of fresh bread drifted out of the bakery door."

"She caught a whiff of his cologne as he walked past."

A slight hint or trace of something.

"There was a whiff of scandal surrounding the deal."

"You could sense a whiff of tension in the meeting."

How to use whiff

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishA brief, faint trace of a smell — or, more loosely, a faint hint of some feeling or situation.

Common pairings

a whiff of catch a whiff a faint whiff

Word forms

more whiff comparative, whiffed past tense, whiffs plural, whiffs singular, most whiff superlative

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A _____ of fresh bread drifted out of the bakery door.

Etymology

The noun is possibly: * partly a variant of Middle English wef, weffe (“bad smell, stench, stink; exhalation; vapour; tendency of something to go bad (?)”) [and other forms], possibly a variant of either: ** waf, waif, waife (“odour, scent”), possibly from waven (“to move to and fro, sway, wave; to stray, wander; to move in a weaving manner; (figuratively) to hesitate, vacillate”), from Old English wafian (“to wave”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *webʰ- (“to braid, weave”); or ** wef (“a blow, stroke”), from weven (“to travel, wander; to move to and fro, flutter, waver; to blow something away, waft; to cause something to move; to fall; to cut deeply; to sever; to give up, yield; to give deference to; to avoid; to afflict, trouble; to beckon, signal”); further etymology uncertain, perhaps from Old English wefan (“to weave”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *webʰ- (“to braid, weave”)), or from wǣfan (see bewǣfan, ymbwǣfan); and * partly onomatopoeic. Noun sense 6 (“name of a number of flatfish”) is possibly derived from sense 1 (“brief, gentle breeze; a light gust of air”), sense 4 (“small quantity of cloud, smoke, vapour, etc.”), and other such senses. The verb and adject

Origin: Middle English

Synonyms

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puff puff of air

Related words

blow cloud marijuana breeze puff gasp flatter quilt

Rhymes for whiff

tiff biff riff diff jiff stiff cliff sniff skiff Griff spliff Schiff

See all rhymes for whiff →

Frequently asked questions

What does “whiff” mean?

The word “whiff” means a brief smell carried through the air, or a light gust of air. In plain terms, a brief, faint trace of a smell — or, more loosely, a faint hint of some feeling or situation.

How do you pronounce “whiff”?

“Whiff” is pronounced wihf (/(h)wɪf/ in IPA).

How do you use “whiff” in a sentence?

Here is “whiff” used in a sentence: “A whiff of fresh bread drifted out of the bakery door.”

What part of speech is “whiff”?

“Whiff” is a noun.

Is “whiff” a common word?

“Whiff” is an uncommon word in modern English.

How many meanings does “whiff” have?

“Whiff” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a brief smell carried through the air, or a light gust of air.

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