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smell2 S2 W3 past tense and past participle smelled especially American English or smelt
British English
British English1 to notice or recognize a particular smell : 
Can you smell something?
notice a smell
[transitive not in progressive]Can you smell something?2 to have a particular smell
have a smell
[linking verb]3 to have an unpleasant smell : Your feet smell!
have a bad smell
[intransitive not in progressive]Your feet smell!4 to put your nose near something in order to discover what kind of smell it has [= sniff]: She bent down and smelt the flowers.
put your nose near something
[transitive]She bent down and smelt the flowers.5 to have the ability to notice and recognize smells : I've got a cold and I can't smell.
have ability
[intransitive]I've got a cold and I can't smell.6 to feel that something is going to happen, especially something bad : Miller had smelled trouble the moment she said who she was.
smell trouble/danger etc
Miller had smelled trouble the moment she said who she was.8 to seem dishonest or untrue : The whole thing is beginning to smell fishy to me.
smell wrong/fishy/odd etc
informalThe whole thing is beginning to smell fishy to me.➔ come up/out smelling of roses
at rose1 (6)smell somebody/something ↔ out
phrasal verb1 to find something by smelling [= sniff out]: They use dogs trained to smell out explosives.
They use dogs trained to smell out explosives.2 informal to find or recognize something because you have a natural ability to do this [= sniff out]: They'll be able to smell out any corruption.
They'll be able to smell out any corruption.GRAMMAR GRAMMAR
You can say that something smells good, bad, strange etc.!! Use an adjective, never an adverb • You smell wonderful (NOT wonderfully) - what perfume is that? In British English, you can use smell with of to say what something smells like • Her jacket smelled of smoke (NOT smelled smoke). If you say that something or someone smells, you mean they have a bad smell • Your socks smell. If you can smell something or you smell something, you notice its smell • I can smell coffee. • We smelled smoke.!! You do not say 'feel a smell'.
GRAMMAR You can say that something smells good, bad, strange etc.!! Use an adjective, never an adverb • You smell wonderful (NOT wonderfully) - what perfume is that? In British English, you can use smell with of to say what something smells like • Her jacket smelled of smoke (NOT smelled smoke). If you say that something or someone smells, you mean they have a bad smell • Your socks smell. If you can smell something or you smell something, you notice its smell • I can smell coffee. • We smelled smoke.!! You do not say 'feel a smell'.
