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mrsd
Lv 5
mrsd asked in Education & ReferenceWords & Wordplay · 1 decade ago

Why do we say "smells of" instead of smells like?

If we feel soft fabric, we say it feels LIKE silk.

If we taste a creamy dessert, we say it tastes like ice cream

If we hear a rumbling sound, we say it sounds LIKE thunder

If we see a furry animal, we say it looks like a kitten.

Yet, when we smell burning leaves, we say it smells OF smoke, not like smoke.

4 Answers

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  • Snowy
    1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    they are both the same just 1 is a fancier way to say it

  • Cloots Tokala
    Lv 5
    1 decade ago

    You can say it either way. AKA "smells like teen spirit"

    " smells of" is a more elegant way to say it .

    seems more like something you would hear in Europe as opposed to the west.

  • Steve Morency
    1 decade ago

    It's smells like smoke where I come from

  • Hilary
    Lv 6
    1 decade ago

    It's an English thing that only the locals will get.

    Source(s): Lancashire lass
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