From smell +‎ -y.

• enPR: smĕlʹē, IPA^(key): /ˈsmɛli/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛli

smelly (comparative smellier, superlative smelliest)

1. Having a bad smell.

   She was hesitant to remove her shoes, as her socks were rather smelly.

2. (figuratively) Having a quality that arouses suspicion.

   The detective read the documents and thought, "Something sure is smelly about this case."

3. (figuratively, computing, slang, in extreme programming) Having signs that suggest a design problem; having a code smell.

   That smelly code needs to be refactored.

• (having a bad smell): fetid, foul-smelling, malodorous, rank, stinky (slang), whiffy (slang); see also Thesaurus:malodorous
• (having a quality that arouses suspicion): dodgy (informal), doubtful, dubious, suspect, suspicious

• (antonym(s) of “having a bad smell”): aromatic, fragrant, sweet-smelling
• (antonym(s) of “having a quality that arouses suspicion”): above board, clean

smelly (plural smellies)

1. (rare) A smelly person.
   • 1965, Richard Dowling, chapter 31, in All the Beautiful People, London: Arthur Barker Limited[…], page 228:

     And I can get home myself, thank you. Little smelly.

   • 2000, Ian Whybrow, Little Wolf’s Postbag, London: Collins, →ISBN, page 45:

     Or if you know any piglets with water pistols, maybe you could throw them a bottle of gargle and say, ‘Hoy you smellies, I bet you can’t squirt the little dangly thing up the dark end of my gob with this’.

   • 2009 June, “Anti-Fascism in Liverpool: Action! Race War to Door Wars [Review]”, in KSL: Bulletin of the Kate Sharpley Library, number 58-9, London: Kate Sharpley Library, →ISSN, page 7, column 1:

     However, according to [Joey] Owens, these anarchists are all a bunch of smellies, who run away “screaming” while forever being hit over the head with iron bars by victorious fascists.

   • [2012, Joe O’Neill, Wrath of the Caid (The Red Hand Adventures; II), [Hood River, Ore.]: Black Ship Publishing, →ISBN, page 92:

     Both of them had been called “little smellies,” because Hillie insisted their breath reeked of garlic and fish.]

   • 2014, Shweta Taneja, Cult of Chaos: An Anantya Tantrist Mystery, Noida, Uttar Pradesh: HarperCollins Publishers India, →ISBN, page 212:

     I have two little smellies to think of too. Family is big and cost of living in this city is increasing by the day.

A comical pronunciation of the initials SMLE.

smelly (plural smellies)

1. (firearms, informal) a Short Magazine Lee Enfield rifle or one of its derivatives.

• mysell