Wafting

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The gentle movement of air that transports aromas or sounds through space
2. The process of softly carrying or conveying particles through the atmosphere in an effortless manner
3. The soft, drifting motion of air that spreads smells or sounds lightly across an area

Etymology: The verb "waft" appears in Middle English as "waften", and its origin is genuinely uncertain. One possibility is an unrecorded Old English form, "wafettan", built from "wafian", meaning "to wave", with an "-ettan" ending. The other is a loan from Middle Dutch "wachten", which meant "to guard" or "to provide for", a sense far removed from drifting air. Neither theory can be proven from surviving evidence, so the word's ancestry remains open. Related forms in other Germanic languages point in a similar direction. German has "wabern", meaning to waft or shimmer, and Icelandic has "váfa", which means to fluctuate or waver. These cognates suggest a root connected with unsteady movement, which fits the picture of a breeze drifting back and forth. Here, "wafting" simply describes that gentle, unhurried motion of air carrying something along with it.

Synonyms: floating, drifting, blowing, carrying