Translation guide
How to express 'sniff out' in Japanese, covering literal smelling by animals and figurative detection of hidden things.
Describe an animal using its nose to find something by scent.
Most direct equivalent for animals sniffing out prey, drugs, etc. Combines 'sniff' (嗅ぐ) with 'find/attach' (つける).
Express finding something hidden or not obvious, like a secret, a lie, or a talented person.
嗅ぎつける retains a nuance of 'sniffing' and is often used when someone follows clues or intuition, like a journalist or detective. 見つけ出す is more neutral and simply means 'find out' or 'locate'.
彼は情報を嗅ぎつけるのが早い。
He is quick to sniff out information.
彼は解決策を見つけ出した。
He found out the solution.
嗅ぐ (かぐ) means 'to sniff' but not 'to sniff out'. To express successful detection, you need a compound like 嗅ぎつける or 嗅ぎ当てる.
警察犬が麻薬を嗅ぎつけた。
The police dog sniffed out the drugs.
Literally 'sniff and hit the mark'. Emphasizes successfully locating the source of a smell.
犬がトリュフを嗅ぎ当てた。
The dog sniffed out the truffle.
Means 'follow a scent'. Used when an animal tracks something by smell over a distance.
猟犬が獲物の匂いをたどった。
The hound sniffed out the prey by following its scent.
Same word as literal use, but figuratively means to get wind of something, often used for journalists or curious people uncovering secrets.
記者がスキャンダルを嗅ぎつけた。
The reporter sniffed out the scandal.
General term for 'find out' or 'track down'. Not smell-related, but natural for discovering hidden things or people.
彼は隠れた才能を見つけ出すのが上手だ。
He's good at sniffing out hidden talent.
Literally 'sniff and take', implies sensing something intuitively, like danger or a lie.
彼女は危険をかぎ取った。
She sniffed out the danger.
Means 'sense' or 'perceive'. Used when someone detects a situation or hidden motive without explicit evidence.
彼は嘘を察知した。
He sniffed out the lie.
Means 'expose' or 'uncover'. Stronger nuance of revealing something deliberately hidden, like a secret or wrongdoing.
彼らは陰謀を暴いた。
They sniffed out the conspiracy.