English → Latin
“scent” in Latin
odōrātiōthe action of smelling; the sense of smellodōrorto smell, examine by smelling; to search out, trace out, investigateodorA smell, perfume, stench.; Inkling, suggestion.nīdorthe steam or smell from roasting, burning or boiling (especially animals)spīritusair, breath, breathing; light breeze; spirit, ghostanhēlituspanting, puffing (difficulty in breathing); breath, exhalation, vapour; gaspsagācitāskeenness (of perception), acuteness (of the senses); sagacity, shrewdnesstaeterfoul, noisome, disgusting (smell); offensive, revolting, foul; shocking, hideous, loathsomefētorstench, stink, bad smell, fetidnessolfaciōto smell, scent; to cause to smell of anything
The English word scent itself goes back to Latin sentiō.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
scent s.
The power of smell, odoratio (perception by means of the olfactory nerves): odoratus (sense or faculty of smelling): ☞ olfactus instead of odoratus and odor are poetical only.
The exhalation of anything, odor, odor (general term, both good or bad smell): nidor (κνίσσα): spiritus (e.g., of flowers; to live on the scent of flowers, spiritu florum naribus hausto victitare): anhelitus (of spirits). A bad scent, odor malus or teter; odor foedus: foetor (the latter, stronger terms). A pleasant or agreeable scent, odor suavis: suavitas odoris: a strong scent, odor gravis: to have a scent, odorem habere, praestare, emittere (poetically, spargere, spirare, diffundere): to have a fine scent, bene or jucunde olere: to have a bad scent, male olere; foetere. The agreeable scent of flowers, suavitas odorum, qui afflantur e floribus: to have a scent of such and such a thing (= to smell like so and so), olere or redolere. Anything loses its scent, alicujus rei odor non permanet integer (after Col., 12, 51 [49], 3): without scent, odore carens: ex aliqua re odor non afflatur or odores non afflantur: to be without scent, nihil olere (to smell of nothing).
(Of dogs)(Of dogs), sagacitas: a dog of good scent, canis sagax, or canis vestigator. To follow the scent, [Vid: To SCENT]: to be on the scent, odoratu sentire aliquid, odorari aliquid (PROP.); odorare, sentire (figuratively): to put upon a wrong scent, a recta via abducere (PROP.); inducere aliquem in errorem (figuratively): to get on the wrong scent, deflectere a via (PROP.); errare (figuratively). To get scent of anything; e.g., that there is money somewhere, nummos olfacere (as Cic., Rull., 1, 4, 11). Should not I have got scent of this six whole months ago, when, etc., non sex totis mensibus prius olfecissem cum, etc. (Ter., Ad., 3, 3, 42): ☞ olet or subolet alicui aliquid comic only.
scent v.
Transitively, To perceive by the smell, odorari: olfacere (to inhale any scent so as to have the olfactory nerves affected by it; hence to perceive = to get or have a scent of anything [Vid.
scent
substantive): conceptum odorem sectari (PROP., of dogs, to follow the scent †); also, alicujus or alicujus rei vestigia persequi, or persequi aliquem or aliquid simply.
To imbue with odor, odoribus imbuere or perfundere (to perfume): unguento perfricare (by way of anointing): to be scented, unguenta olere (to smell of scent or perfume): unguentis affluere (all over): to scent one’s self, se odoribus imbuere (general term); se ungere: caput et os suum unguento perfricare (with unguents): to scent with anything, suffire aliqua re; e.g., thymo [Vid: To FUMIGATE]: scented, odoratus.
To perfume, Vid: SCENT-BOX, vasculum olfactorium (Isidorus, 19, 31, extr.).
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for scent?
- The usual Latin words for “scent” are odōrātiō, odōror, odor; also nīdor, spīritus, anhēlitus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.