Translation guide
The English verb 'sniff' covers several distinct actions: inhaling audibly through the nose (often to smell something or when crying), expressing disdain, and detecting something suspicious. Japanese uses different verbs and onomatopoeia for each nuance.
The physical action of drawing air into the nose with a sound, typically to perceive a scent.
The most common verb for sniffing to smell something. Used for both intentional and casual sniffing.
The dog is sniffing the ground.
I sniffed the scent of the flower.
Explicitly says 'sniff the smell', often used when the object of sniffing is a smell rather than a physical object.
I think I sniffed a strange smell.
Onomatopoeic verb mimicking the sound of sniffing, often used for animals or cute, repeated sniffing. Casual.
The cat is sniffing the box.
The involuntary, repeated sniffing sound made when the nose is runny, often from crying or illness.
The standard phrase for sniffing back mucus. Used for both crying and colds.
She sniffled while crying.
The sound of him sniffling from a cold is annoying.
Onomatopoeic expression for sniffling repeatedly, often with a runny nose. More vivid and colloquial.
I'm sniffling because of hay fever.
To make a sniffing sound as a gesture of scorn or disapproval.
To sense or suspect something intuitively, as if by smell. Often used figuratively.
Literally 'sniff out', used for both literal scent detection and figuratively discovering secrets or information.
The reporter sniffed out a scandal.
To 'sense a smell' figuratively, meaning to suspect something is off. Often used with '何か' (something).
I sniffed something fishy in his story.
To inhale a substance, often illicit, through the nose.
General verb for inhaling or smoking. Context clarifies it's through the nose if specified.
He sniffed cocaine through his nose.
Formal/technical term for inhalation or suction. Used in medical or legal contexts.
Young people sniffing paint thinner is a problem.
嗅ぐ (kagu) can take a direct object (the thing being smelled), while 匂いを嗅ぐ (nioi o kagu) explicitly makes 'smell' the object. Both are natural, but 嗅ぐ is more direct and common for physical objects.
English 'sniff at' (to disdain) cannot be directly translated as ～に嗅ぐ. Use 鼻で笑う or ふんと鼻を鳴らす instead.
She sniffed contemptuously and left the room.