The act or process of emitting smoke.
"The old chimney was smoking heavily after hours in a cold draft."
In plain English: Smoking is the habit of burning tobacco and inhaling the smoke.
"The doctor advised him to quit smoking for his own health."
Usage: As a noun, smoking refers to either the habit of inhaling tobacco fumes or the physical emission of smoke from something burning. Use this term when describing the activity itself rather than the person who performs it, which would be "a smoker."
present participle of smoke
"The smell of smoking wood drifted from the cabin as I approached the front door."
In plain English: Smoking is when you burn tobacco and breathe in the smoke.
"He took a break from work to smoke on the porch."
Giving off smoke.
"The old fireplace was smoking heavily, filling the room with gray haze."
In plain English: Smoking describes something that is covered with or made of tobacco smoke.
"The smoking room is on the third floor."
The word "smoking" comes from the Old English term smociende, which meant emitting smoke. It entered Middle English as a present participle form derived directly from the root verb for smoke.