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Sniff vs Snoop - What's the difference?

sniff | snoop |

As nouns the difference between sniff and snoop

is that sniff is an instance of sniffing while snoop is the act of snooping.

As verbs the difference between sniff and snoop

is that sniff is (ambitransitive) to make a short, audible inhalation, through the nose, as if to smell something while snoop is to be devious and cunning so as not to be seen.

sniff

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • An instance of sniffing.
    • She gave the flowers a quick sniff to check they were real.
  • A quantity of something that is inhaled through the nose
  • A brief perception
  • * {{quote-news
    • , year=2011 , date=November 3 , author=Chris Bevan , title=Rubin Kazan 1 - 0 Tottenham , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=Tottenham did have a sniff of goal when Defoe's drilled cross just eluded his strike partner at the far post but their best effort came early in the second half when Ryan Fredericks cut in from the right before firing into the side netting.}}

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (ambitransitive) To make a short, audible inhalation, through the nose, as if to smell something.
    • The dog sniffed around the park, searching for a nice scent.
    I sniffed the meat to see if it hadn't gone off.
  • To say something while sniffing, for example in case of illness or unhappiness, or in contempt.
    • "He's never coming back, is he?" she sniffed while looking at a picture of him.
  • To perceive vaguely
    • I can sniff trouble coming from the basement.
  • To be dismissive or contemptuous of something.
  • (computing) To intercept and analyse packets of data being transmitted over a network.
  • (slang, UK) To inhale drugs in powder form (usually cocaine) through the nose.

    • Derived terms

    * sniff test

    snoop

    English

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To be devious and cunning so as not to be seen.
  • To secretly spy on or investigate, especially into the private personal life of others.
    • If I had not snooped on her, I wouldn't have found out that she lied about her degree.

    Related terms

    * snoop around

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The act of snooping
  • One who snoops
    • Be careful what you say around Gene because he's the bosses' snoop .
  • A private detective
    • She hired a snoop to find out if her husband was having an affair.

    References

    * 1996, T.F. Hoad, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Etymology , Oxford University Press, ISBN 0192830988

    Anagrams

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