malodorous

adjective

mal·​odor·​ous ˌmal-ˈō-də-rəs How to pronounce malodorous (audio)
Synonyms of malodorousnext
1
: having a bad odor
a malodorous mixture of chemicals
2
: highly improper
malodorous practices and chicanery in high financial places— New Republic
malodorously adverb
malodorousness noun

Synonyms

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malodorous, stinking, fetid, noisome, putrid, rank, fusty, musty mean bad-smelling.

malodorous may range from the unpleasant to the strongly offensive.

malodorous fertilizers

stinking and fetid suggest the foul or disgusting.

prisoners were held in stinking cells
the fetid odor of skunk cabbage

noisome adds a suggestion of being harmful or unwholesome as well as offensive.

a stagnant, noisome sewer

putrid implies particularly the sickening odor of decaying organic matter.

the putrid smell of rotting fish

rank suggests a strong unpleasant smell.

rank cigar smoke

fusty and musty suggest lack of fresh air and sunlight, fusty also implying prolonged uncleanliness, musty stressing the effects of dampness, mildew, or age.

a fusty attic
the musty odor of a damp cellar

Examples of malodorous in a Sentence

the cellar will need to be cleared of several malodorous piles of garbage
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Midsummer is usually when sargassum, the floating seaweed that often washes up in malodorous piles on Florida beaches, starts to wane. — Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2025 Callery pear and Bradford pear trees are considered malodorous, according to the Spruce, a home and garden site. — Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025 Rue was considered the most malodorous of all herbs, was even thought to keep away evil spirits, and was spread on church floors for this purpose. — Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 12 June 2025 Public stations were expensive to maintain and quickly became dirty and malodorous. — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 22 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for malodorous

Word History

First Known Use

1850, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of malodorous was in 1850

Rhymes for malodorous

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Browse Nearby Words

malodorant
malodorous
malojillo
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Cite this Entry

“Malodorous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/malodorous. Accessed 15 Aug. 2025.

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Kids Definition

malodorous

adjective
mal·​odor·​ous (ˈ)mal-ˈōd-ə-rəs How to pronounce malodorous (audio)
: having a bad smell
malodorously adverb
malodorousness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on malodorous

Nglish: Translation of malodorous for Spanish Speakers

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