Thread: Разные вопросы по грамматике (by Antonio1986)

P.S. But even though the noun обоняние ("the olfactory sense") can be used with people, my impression is that the verb обонять ("to detect a smell") is nearly always used in reference to non-human creatures.

E.g., "The shark smells blood in the water", Акула обоняет кровь в воде.

Originally Posted by Throbert McGee

P.S. But even though the noun обоняние ("the olfactory sense") can be used with people, my impression is that the verb обонять ("to detect a smell") is nearly always used in reference to non-human creatures.

E.g., "The shark smells blood in the water", Акула обоняет кровь в воде.

Normally обоняние is of a formal or scientific style, but is used for humans as well. Verb обонять on the other hand has a flavor (sic!) of something colloquial and informal.