whiffing

present participle of whiff
as in sniffing
to become aware of by means of the sense organs in the nose whiffed the pot of chili on the stove and announced that he was staying for dinner

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of whiffing But whiffing like that gave his credibility a permanent stain. — Matt Calkins Outkick, FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026 Street Fighter is whiffing with critics, holding a 45 percent critics approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an audience score of 82. — Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026 Ohtani fouled off the next two pitches before whiffing on a sinker to end the inning. — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026 However, that doesn’t excuse him from whiffing on all but one free agent (Josh Uche) the team added this offseason. — Omar Kelly august 23, Miami Herald, 23 Aug. 2026 After whiffing during his first at bat, Hundley hit a triple in the fourth inning, a double off the left field wall in the scoreless sixth, a homer (his 16th of the season) in the eighth and a single in the 11th. — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 16 June 2026 By punting on draft picks, the Rams are taking the possibility of whiffing on them out of the equation. — Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 2 June 2026 The Mets struggled against right-hander Carmen Mlodzinski, whiffing on his four-seam fastball and his splitter. — Abbey Mastracco, Hartford Courant, 29 Mar. 2026 The Slovenian star shook his head in disdain after whiffing on a 3-point attempt from the top of the key, the ball falling well short of the rim. — Benjamin Royer, Oc Register, 28 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whiffing
Verb
  • While exploring the neighborhood, his dog, Betty, took off and sprinted through the open door of an empty house, sniffing around yet completely at ease.
    — Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Eventually, Bird’s film — with a script co-written by Matthew Robbins — gets to the meat of the action when Venus’ extremely complicated life runs smack into Ray and his knack for sniffing out bad guys.
    — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 10 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • This extends the concept beyond smelling an object remotely toward recreating aspects of a drinking experience.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2026
  • But the idea of smelling like Dove soap didn’t appeal to me right off the bat.
    — James Manso, Allure, 23 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Over time, inhaling these irritants can trigger chronic airway inflammation, irreversible lung tissue scarring, and obstructive pulmonary conditions.
    — Khloe Quill, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Without a mask, without fear of needing lung implants, without having to worry about inhaling a soupçon of strychnine or similar industrial pollutants.
    — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 21 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Whiffing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whiffing. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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