snuff — English Dictionary

snuff
Pronunciations (3)
  • /snʌf/
    Pronunciation notes
    • General-American
    • Received-Pronunciation
  • /snɐf/
    Pronunciation notes
    • Australia
    • New-Zealand
  • /snʊf/
    Pronunciation notes
    • Northern-England

Noun

  1. Finely ground or pulverized tobacco (or other plant derivative) intended for use by being sniffed or snorted into the nose.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    The native of some South American tribes use this drug as an aphrodisiac in the form of a snuff called cohoba.

  2. Fine-ground or minced tobacco, dry or moistened, intended for use by placing a pinch behind the lip or beneath the tongue.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    Dry snuffs are often adulterated with quicklime, and moist snuffs, as rappee, with ammonia, hellebore, pearl-ash, etc.

    […] most of the women dipped snuff and of course had a spit-cup in the house.

  3. A snort or sniff of fine-ground, powdered, or pulverized tobacco.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  4. The act of briskly inhaling by the nose; a sniff, a snort.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  5. Resentment or skepticism expressed by quickly drawing air through the nose; snuffling; sniffling.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  6. Snot, mucus.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Obsolete
    • Uncountable
  7. Smell, scent, odour.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Obsolete
    • Uncountable

Verb

  1. To inhale through the nose.

    Usage
    • Transitive
    Examples

    He snuffs the wind, his heels the sand excite.

    Earl Walter winds his bugle horn; / To horſe, to horſe, halloo, halloo! / His fiery courſer ſnuffs the morn, / And thronging ſerfs their Lord purſue.

    More examples (1)

    Napoleon paced to and fro in silence, occasionally snuffing at the ground.

  2. To turn up the nose and inhale air, as an expression of contempt; hence, to take offense.

    Usage
    • Intransitive
    Examples

    January 29, 1625, Joseph Hall, Public thanksgiving for the wonderful mitigation of the late morality Do the enemies of the church rage and snuff?

  3. To drug (a person) with a mixture of snuff and beer.

    Usage
    • Ireland
    • UK usage
    • Obsolete
    • Slang
    • Transitive

Noun

  1. The burning part of a candle wick, or the black, burnt remains of a wick (which must be periodically removed).

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    his memory stinks like the snuff of a candle when it is put out […]

    If the burning snuff happens to get out of the snuffers, you have a chance that it may fall into a dish of soup.

  2. Leavings in a glass after drinking; heeltaps.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Obsolete
    • Uncountable
  3. A murder.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Slang
    • Uncountable
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    The cops are chasing their own asses on the St Christopher case, so how about a “Are You St Christopher's Next Slaying?” piece? Profiles of all the snuffs to date and reconstructions of the victims' last minutes.

  4. A video showing a real, non-acted murder.

    Usage
    • attributive
    • Countable
    • Slang
    • Uncountable
  5. Erotica focusing on a character's murder.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Informal
    • Uncountable
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    If you like snuff stories, Mr. Witomski's computer will send you information about the Gladiator newsletter. And if you happen to prefer killing sexual partners of the opposite sex — no problem, the computer will alter the pronouns.

    insane woman voice: no i’m not into snuff or gore I just like when pretty femmes get their heads chopped off

Verb

  1. To extinguish a candle or oil-lamp flame by covering the burning end of the wick until the flame is suffocated.

  2. To trim the burnt part of a candle wick.

    Usage
    • Obsolete
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    The dimness of the light her candle emitted made her turn to it in alarm; but there was no danger of its sudden extinction, it had yet some hours to burn; and that she might not have any greater difficulty in distinguishing the writing than what its ancient date might occasion, she hastily snuffed it. Alas! it was snuffed and extinguished in one.

  3. To snuff out; to extinguish; to put out; to kill.

    Usage
    • Slang
    Examples

    Too much of a coward to snuff myself Guess I'll just have to suffer myself

    More examples (1)

    A court yesterday rejected a challenge to the constitutionality of prohibiting same-sex marriage, snuffing hopes for marriage equality proponents to shortcut stalled legislative efforts.

Adjective

  1. snuff colored; of a greyish to yellowish brown

Noun

  1. the charred portion of a candlewick

    Broader terms
  2. a pinch of smokeless tobacco inhaled at a single time

  3. finely powdered tobacco for sniffing up the nose

    Broader terms
  4. sensing an odor by inhaling through the nose

    Synonyms
    Broader terms

Verb

  1. sniff or smell inquiringly

    Synonyms
    Broader terms
  2. inhale (something) through the nose

    Examples

    snuff coke

Word forms
snuffssnuffssnuffingsnuffedsnuffed

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