waft
Americanverb (used with object)
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to carry lightly and smoothly through the air or over water.
The gentle breeze wafted the sound of music to our ears.
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to send or convey lightly, as if in flight.
The actress wafted kisses to her admirers in the audience.
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Obsolete. to signal to, summon, or direct by waving.
verb (used without object)
noun
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a sound, odor, etc., faintly perceived.
a waft of perfume.
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a wafting movement; light current or gust.
a waft of air.
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the act of wafting.
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Nautical. Also a signal given by waving a flag.
verb
noun
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the act or an instance of wafting
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something, such as a scent, carried on the air
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a wafting motion
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Also called: waif. nautical (formerly) a signal flag hoisted furled to signify various messages depending on where it was flown
Other Word Forms
- unwafted adjective
- waftage noun
- wafter noun
Etymology
Origin of waft
1535–45; back formation from late Middle English waughter armed escort vessel < Dutch or Low German wachter watchman; in some senses confused with waff
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At the impact site, a fresh evergreen scent wafted through the air from cypress trees whose branches were blown off in the strike.
From Barron's
In protest, he jumped on stage, wiggled his bottom at the cameras, made a strange wafting gesture with his hands and beat a hasty retreat, pursued by Jackson's security team.
From BBC
On Thursday morning, over 100 artists, gallerists and collectors representing 24 countries wafted into the maze that is Frieze at the Santa Monica Airport and transformed the space into a winding runway.
From Los Angeles Times
They made do with no running water, and soon the smell of grilled fish wafted through the site.
From Barron's
The gentle breeze wafting out to sea turned into a gray, choking, sick-making fog.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
