smell (an odor)
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- 1 smell (an odor)、detect a smell
- 2 sense something suspicious、detect signs of trouble
This expression means perceiving a smell that reaches you and can also describe sensing that something is suspicious.
smell (an odor)、detect a smell
Describes becoming aware of an odor, whether pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral.
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ได้กลิ่นกาแฟไหม dây klìn kaafɛɛ mǎy Can you smell the coffee? ได้กลิ่นกาแฟไหม details
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ฉันได้กลิ่นอะไรแปลก ๆ chǎn dây klìn aray plɛ̀ɛk plɛ̀ɛk I smell something strange. ฉันได้กลิ่นอะไรแปลก ๆ details
sense something suspicious、detect signs of trouble
Figuratively describes picking up signs that something is unusual or suspicious.
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เรื่องนี้ได้กลิ่นตุ ๆ rʉ̂aŋ níi dây klìn tù tù Something smells fishy about this. เรื่องนี้ได้กลิ่นตุ ๆ details
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ตำรวจได้กลิ่นความผิดปกติ tamrùat dây klìn khwaam phìt pokatì The police sensed that something was wrong. ตำรวจได้กลิ่นความผิดปกติ details
Learning notes
Explanation
ได้กลิ่น consists of ได้ and กลิ่น (“odor” or “scent”). Here, ได้ indicates successful perception, so the expression as a whole means becoming aware of a smell. A common pattern is “person + ได้กลิ่น + source of the smell.” For example, ฉันได้กลิ่นกาแฟ means “I can smell coffee.” It may also be followed by a type of odor, as in กลิ่นไหม้ (“a burnt smell”). The expression itself is neutral and works with pleasant scents, bad odors, and everything in between. The surrounding words and context indicate whether the smell is good or bad. It can also be used figuratively for detecting suspicious circumstances or signs that something is wrong.
Usage
It is common in everyday situations involving food, coffee, flowers, or perfume, as well as warning smells such as gas, smoke, burning, or decay. ได้กลิ่นอะไรไหม (“Do you smell something?”) is a useful way to ask whether another person notices an odor. Figuratively, it may be used when clues make a story or situation seem suspicious.
Caution
ได้กลิ่น normally describes a person perceiving an odor. Use มีกลิ่น to say that an object has an odor, หอม for smelling pleasant, and เหม็น for smelling bad. For the deliberate action of sniffing something, use ดม. Depending on context, ไม่ได้กลิ่น can mean either “I don't smell anything right now” or “I am unable to smell.”
Differences from similar words
1 smell (an odor) synonyms
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ดม means deliberately sniffing something, often by bringing your nose close to it. ได้กลิ่น focuses on perceiving an odor that reaches you.
2 sense something suspicious synonyms
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รู้สึกทะแม่ง ๆ is a conversational way to say that something feels vaguely off. ได้กลิ่น uses the metaphor of picking up a scent to suggest detecting suspicious clues.