sniff test
nounUK /ˈsnɪf tɛst/ · US /ˈsnɪf ˌtɛst/
Etymology From sniff (noun) + test (noun).
1
An inspection of an object by smelling it, as for cleanliness of clothing or freshness of food.
- Let wood dry overnight so solvent evaporates. Mr. [Hugh] Fite uses the sniff test: when he no longer smells solvent, the surface is likely dry enough.1988 March, “No Longer an ‘Afterthought’ Kitchen”, in Sunset: The Magazine of Western Living, Menlo Park, Calif.: Lane Publishing Co., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 108, column 3:
- Spices properly kept can last for months. To be sure the flavor hasn't weakened, give them the "sniff test" (check for a pungent aroma) and look for vibrant color.1996 December, “The Best Cookies in Town: The Well-stocked Cookie Cupboard: For Foolproof Cookies, Select the Right Ingredients and Use Them Properly”, in Myrna Blyth, editor, Ladies’ Home Journal, New York, N.Y.: Meredith Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 154, column 2:
2
Figuratively An informal check of whether an idea or proposal is credible, ethical, etc., using one's common sense or sense of propriety.
- Near-synonyms: reality check, sanity check, sanity test
- But does it pass the sniff test?
2 more examples
- After almost a year of tortuous deliberation, pro-Western forces at Delta prevailed, and the board agreed to purchase Western for a price which was over ten times the market price of Western when Delta had begun its early "sniff tests."1988, Sidney F. Davis, “The Wrong Stuff”, in Delta Air Lines: Debunking the Myth, Atlanta, Ga.: Peachtree Publishers, →ISBN, pages 153–154:
- I'm like the seasoned bachelor. I know what I'm looking for, and I don't have the time or inclination to wait until it finds me. No more protracted sniff tests, no more playing my cards close to the table. I have nothing to lose should my instincts turn out to be dead wrong.2001 February, Melinda Marshall, “You Gotta Have Friends”, in Myrna Blyth, editor, Ladies’ Home Journal, New York, N.Y.: Meredith Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 50, column 3:
3
Medicine, Sciences A medical procedure involving a person taking quick, short sniffs which cause contraction of the diaphragm during a fluoroscopy, enabling abnormalities of the diaphragm to be detected; diaphragm fluoroscopy.
- The most reliable radiographic maneuver to detect paradoxical movement is the sniff test, consisting of rapidly repeated inspirations through the nostrils during fluoroscopy. Normally, both hemidiaphragms descend sharply during a sniff, but with unilateral disphragmatic paralysis there is paradoxical upward motion of the affected side.1995, Katherine Malagari, Robert G. Fraser, edited by Charis Roussos, The Thorax […] Part C: Disease (Lung Biology in Health and Disease; 85), 2nd edition, New York, N.Y.: Marcel Dekker, →ISBN, part VI (Diagnosis), page 1771: