What is the word for "the smell of rain"?


I've always noticed that sometimes rain can have a pretty distinct smell.


Do we have a word describing the smell of rain? How can we describe the smell of rain?


"The rain smelt like..."


"The rain had a ... scent."



Answer



I'm surprised this question isn't a dupe, and this word has never been offered as an answer to this question before. It's a famous example of a specific word for a specific sensation.



petrichor


/ˈpeˌtrīkôr/
noun
a pleasant smell that frequently accompanies the first rain after a long period of warm, dry weather.
other than the petrichor emanating from the rapidly drying grass, there was not a trace of evidence that it had rained at all



This particular definition is from Oxford Dictionaries Online (ODO).


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