perfume

perfume — noun

1. a scented liquid that people put on their body, especially the neck or wrists, t

1.名詞A2
釋義

a scented liquid that people put on their body, especially the neck or wrists, to smell attractive.

例句

Ella dabbed perfume on her wrists before the school concert.

dab perfume on your wrists

A small bottle of perfume rolled out of Leo's gym bag.

a bottle of perfume

同義詞
  • fragrance

    more general and often used in shops or advertising for scented products.

  • cologne

    usually a lighter scented product, often marketed to men.

  • scent

    can mean perfume, but more often means the smell itself.

文法句型

a bottle of perfume

wear perfume

put perfume on your skin

用法筆記

Can be countable when you mean a bottle or a type of product, but often uncountable when you mean the substance in general. Distinguish from sense 2: this sense is the product itself, not the smell coming from something.

常見錯誤

❌She put perfume in her neck.
✅She put perfume on her neck.
💡use 'on' for something placed on the skin.
❌He bought a perfume and wears it every day.
✅He bought perfume and wears it every day.
💡use the uncountable form when speaking generally about the substance.

2. a pleasant smell that comes from something naturally, especially flowers, plants

2.名詞B2
釋義

a pleasant smell that comes from something naturally, especially flowers, plants, or fresh food.

例句

The garden's perfume drifted through Mina's open kitchen window.

the perfume of flowers or a garden

After the rain, a fresh perfume rose from the orange trees.

perfume rose from something

同義詞
  • fragrance

    slightly more formal and common in product descriptions.

  • scent

    the most general everyday word for a smell, whether light or strong.

  • aroma

    often used for food, coffee, or wine rather than flowers.

反義詞
  • stench

    a very strong unpleasant smell.

  • odor

    a more neutral word that often suggests a bad smell in everyday use.

文法句型

the perfume of flowers

a perfume drifted through the room

用法筆記

Usually appears in descriptive writing about flowers, gardens, trees, or food. Distinguish from sense 1: sense 2 names the smell in the air, not a product you buy and wear.

常見錯誤

❌A bad perfume came from the trash can.
✅A bad smell came from the trash can.
💡'perfume' in this sense is for a pleasant smell, not an unpleasant one.
❌The flower gave a perfume smell.
✅The flower gave off a sweet perfume.
💡'perfume' already means the smell, so you do not need 'smell' after it.

perfume — verb