snifter

The verb is derived from Middle English snifteren, snifter, snyfter (“to sniffle”),^[1] possibly from *snift (possibly derived from a Old Norse word—compare Old Danish snifte and Swedish snyfta (“to sniffle; to sob”);^[2] probably ultimately imitative)^[3] + -er- (frequentative suffix)^[4] + -en (suffix forming the infinitive of verbs).^[5]

The noun is derived from the verb.^[6]

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈsnɪftə/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈsnɪftəɹ/
• Rhymes: -ɪftə(ɹ)
• Hyphenation: snift‧er

snifter (third-person singular simple present snifters, present participle sniftering, simple past and past participle sniftered)

1. (intransitive) To sniff; also, to snivel or snuffle.
   • 1611, Randle Cotgrave, compiler, “Brouffer”, in A Dictionarie of the French and English Tongues, London: Adam Islip, →OCLC, signature [M vj], verso, column 1:

     Brouffer. To ſnurt, or ſnifter vvith the noſe, like a horſe.

   • 1611, Randle Cotgrave, compiler, “Nifler”, in A Dictionarie of the French and English Tongues, London: Adam Islip, →OCLC, signature Kkk, recto, column 1:

     Nifler. To ſnifter, or ſnuffe vp ſniuell; to dravv it vp by dravving in the vvind.

   • 1835, James Hogg, “Some Remarkable Passages in the Life of an Edinburgh Baillie, Written by Himself”, in Tales of the Wars of Montrose. , volume I, London: James Cochrane and Co. , →OCLC, page 130:

     I confess when I heard this read out in a strong, mellow and affecting tone, I could not resist crying; the tears ran down my cheeks, and I was obliged to dight them with my sleeve, and snifter like a whipped boy.

2. (transitive, archaic, rare) Followed by out: to speak (words) in a nasal, snuffling manner.

• snifterer
• sniftering (adjective)
• snufter

snifter (plural snifters)

1. (chiefly Northern England, Scotland) A sniff.
2. (figurative)
   1. (chiefly Northern England, Scotland) A strong or severe wind.
   3. (originally and chiefly US) A small, wide, pear-shaped glass used for drinking aromatic liquors such as bourbon and brandy.

      Synonyms: brandy bowl, brandy glass, brandy snifter, cognac glass, whiskey glass

      • 2003 January 20, “Getting Saucy”, in Time‎, New York, N.Y.: Time Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2012-11-03:

        e springs to another wooden vat and turns a valve, filling a snifter with a warm amber liquid. […] Bang holds the liquid up to the light, swirls it around, takes a sniff of the pungent bouquet, puts the glass to his lips—and gives a satisfied smile.

   4. (originally US, informal) Synonym of nip (“a small amount of an alcoholic beverage, especially one equivalent to what a snifter (sense 2.2) might hold”)
      • 1917 (date written), Edgar Rice Burroughs, “The Oakdale Affair”, in The Blue Book Magazine, Chicago, Ill.: Story-press Corp., published March 1918, →OCLC; republished Doylestown, Pa.: Wildside Press, 2003, →ISBN, page 21:

        "Sit down, bo," invited Soup Face. "I guess you're a regular all right. Here, have a snifter?" and he pulled a flask from his side pocket, holding it toward The Oskaloosa Kid.

      • 1923 June, P G Wodehouse, “The Début of Battling Billson”, in Ukridge, London: Herbert Jenkins , published 3 June 1924, →OCLC, page 56:

        And now, old horse, you may lead me across the street to the Coal Hole for a short snifter.

   5. (US, slang) Synonym of cocaine addict; a sniffer.
   6. (US, slang) A small amount of cocaine taken by inhaling through the nose.
   7. (US, slang) A handheld device used to detect signals from radio transmitters; a sniffer.

• brandy snifter
• snifters (plural only)

• snifter on Wikipedia.Wikipedia