snift /snɪft/verb 3noun 3forms 3 verb3 •To snivel. •(dialect) To sniff; to snort or snuff.[S]he, also, entered, and coming pretty close to my Father, snifted at her Flowers with a sort of extatic eagerness, and then let them fall. — 1792 •To cause a snift; to release pressure and vapor, such as from a steam engine or bottling equipment.Hold it for a second or two to test the bottle, then snift, and fill the bottle up to the neck. — 1907 noun3 •A deliberate release of pressure and vapor, such as from a steam engine, or bottling equipment.The whole of the ‘snift’ (which is the waste in bottling aerated waters) is saved by this machine. — 1890 •(dialect, UK) A light dusting, as of snow.Good Lorjus, Meary ! theawrt so hasty; so I clum th' steeigh in o snift, shoavt th' awts eawt, an smackt me riddle oth' hoyle. — 1746 •(dialect, no longer used) A moment; a while.An' if thou'll make a shift effort To tak thi time a bit, owd lass, Thou's have him in a snift! — 1890 formssnifted · snifting · snifts
