scent
/sent/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- A smell, especially a pleasant one: A distinctive, often agreeable odor.
- A trail or clue detectable by smell: The odor left by a person or animal, allowing them to be tracked.
- Perfume: A liquid with a pleasant smell, worn on the body.
Verb:
- To give something a pleasant smell: To apply perfume or fragrance to something.
- To detect or perceive by smell: To smell or sense an odor, often used for animals.
- To begin to have a smell: To give off an odor, often implying a pleasant one.
Usage Examples
Noun:
- The scent of roses filled the garden. (A pleasant smell.)
- The hounds picked up the fox's scent. (A trail detectable by smell.)
- She wore a light, floral scent. (Perfume.)
Verb:
- She scented her letters with lavender. (Applied a pleasant smell.)
- The dog scented the air nervously. (Detected by smell.)
- The evening air scented of jasmine. (Gave off a smell.)
Advanced Usage
On the scent: Having a clue or being close to discovering something.
- The journalist is on the scent of a major story. (The journalist has a promising lead.)
Put/throw someone off the scent: To mislead someone, to divert them from the correct track.
- The false clue threw the investigators off the scent. (It misled the investigators.)
Variants and Related Words
Scented (adj): Having a pleasant smell added.
- scented candles (candles with a fragrance)
Scentless (adj): Having no smell.
- a scentless variety of flower (a flower with no odor)
Synonyms
- Noun: Aroma, fragrance, perfume, odor, smell, trail.
- Verb: Perfume, fragrance, smell, sniff, detect.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Scent out: To find or detect something by using the sense of smell or, figuratively, by investigation.
- The truffle hog can scent out the fungi from meters away. (The pig can find truffles by smell.)
- He has a talent for scenting out a good business opportunity. (He has a talent for detecting a good opportunity.)
Related Idioms
Follow one's nose / Follow the scent: To proceed by using instinct or clues.
- I don't have the address; I'll just have to follow my nose. (I'll proceed based on instinct or clues.)
The scent is hot: The trail or clue is fresh and strong, suggesting success is near.
- The detectives believe the scent is hot and an arrest is imminent. (The detectives believe they are very close to a breakthrough.)
Noun
- any property detected by the olfactory system
- an odor left in passing by which a person or animal can be traced
- a distinctive odor that is pleasant
Verb
- apply perfume to
- She perfumes herself every day
- catch the scent of; get wind of
- The dog nosed out the drugs
- cause to smell or be smelly