1
a whiff of + [noun]
可指短暂的气味，也可指某事物的轻微迹象。
A whiff of garlic drifted from the kitchen.
一阵蒜味从厨房飘来。
一股（难闻的）气味；短暂的臭味
先理解核心含义，再看它在真实句子里的用法。
一股（难闻的）气味；短暂的臭味
A smell, especially an unpleasant one, that is carried briefly through the air.
A whiff of garlic drifted from the kitchen.
一阵蒜味从厨房飘来。
一阵微风；一股轻风；飘来的气息。
A brief, gentle breeze; a light gust of air; a waft.
短暂吸气或呼气,尤指吸烟斗或香烟时喷出的烟。
A short inhalation or exhalation of breath, especially when accompanied by smoke from a cigarette or pipe.
短暂飘过空气中的(常为难闻的)气味。
An odour (usually unpleasant) carried briefly through the air.
少量云、烟、蒸汽等；(旧)尤指一口烟。
A small quantity of cloud, smoke, vapour, etc.; specifically (obsolete), chiefly in take the whiff: a puff of tobacco smoke.
I got a whiff of garlic as soon as I entered the kitchen.
我一进厨房就闻到一股大蒜味。
He gave the wine a quick whiff before tasting it.
他在品尝之前快速闻了一下葡萄酒。
Her speech had a whiff of arrogance that annoyed the audience.
她的演讲带有一丝傲慢，令听众反感。
可指短暂的气味，也可指某事物的轻微迹象。
A whiff of garlic drifted from the kitchen.
一阵蒜味从厨房飘来。
表示不经意间闻到，常用于口语。
I caught a whiff of smoke as I passed the open window.
我经过开着的窗户时闻到一股烟味。
强调主动去闻一下。
She took a whiff of the perfume before buying it.
她先闻了闻那瓶香水，然后才买下。
用于比喻，表示轻微的迹象或暗示。
There was a whiff of scandal about the whole deal.
整笔交易带有一丝丑闻的味道。
Not this
I caught whiff of smoke from the kitchen.
Use this
I caught a whiff of smoke from the kitchen.
whiff 是可数名词，表示“一丝气味”时通常用在 catch/get/have a whiff 结构中，前面必须加不定冠词 a，不能省略。
Not this
I caught a whiff smoke from the kitchen.
Use this
I caught a whiff of smoke from the kitchen.
a whiff of ... 是固定搭配，表示“一股/一丝……的气味”，whiff 后面必须接介词 of 再连接所闻到的气味，不能直接说 whiff smoke。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
闻到一丝……
I caught a whiff of fresh coffee as I walked past the café.
我走过咖啡馆时，闻到一丝新鲜咖啡的香气。
一丝淡淡的……气味
There was a faint whiff of gas in the kitchen.
厨房里有一丝淡淡的煤气味。
一股浓烈的……气味
A strong whiff of bleach hit us as we entered the room.
我们走进房间时，一股浓烈的漂白剂气味扑面而来。
一股烟味；一缕烟
A whiff of smoke drifted through the open window.
一缕烟从开着的窗户飘进来。
一丝丑闻的气息
His financial dealings carried a whiff of scandal.
他的财务往来带着一丝丑闻的气息。
一丝危险的迹象
His calm voice had a whiff of danger.
他平静的声音里透着一丝危险的迹象。
闻到一丝…；察觉到一点…
As I walked past the bakery, I caught a whiff of freshly baked bread.
我走过面包店时闻到了一丝新鲜出炉的面包香味。
一丝，一点点（尤指不好的迹象）
The whole affair had a whiff of corruption about it.
整件事有一丝腐败的气息。
闻一闻；吸一口
Take a whiff of this cheese and tell me if it's still fresh.
闻一闻这块奶酪，告诉我它是否还新鲜。
Use whiff naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
“whiff”听起来像“微风”——一阵轻风或气味，“呼”地一下就飘过，记住它短暂易逝的感觉。
语域：neutral 常见场景：日常对话、文学描写、新闻报道 whiff 在表示“短暂飘过的气味”时，语气比较中性，口语和书面语中都可以使用；但多用于日常交流或非正式写作，正式学术文章里较少出现。
All six words share the spelling chunk -iff and rhyme with /ɪf/: sniff, stiff, cliff, skiff, tiff, miff. The target whiff also belongs to this group (commonly /hwɪf/ or /wɪf/). Beware of lookalikes that begin with whi- but do not rhyme: whip /wɪp/, whim /wɪm/, and whiffle /ˈwɪfəl/.
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.