OLFACTION

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does olfaction mean? 

• OLFACTION (noun)
  The noun OLFACTION has 1 sense:

1. the faculty that enables us to distinguish scents

  Familiarity information: OLFACTION used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• OLFACTION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The faculty that enables us to distinguish scents

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

olfaction; olfactory modality; sense of smell; smell

Hypernyms ("olfaction" is a kind of...):

modality; sense modality; sensory system (a particular sense)

exteroception (sensitivity to stimuli originating outside of the body)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "olfaction"):

nose (the sense of smell (especially in animals))

 Context examples 

This gene may be involved in fasciculation and olfaction.

(NCAM2 Gene, NCI Thesaurus)