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DictionaryputridRotten and foul-smelling
adjective

putrid

PYOO-trid/ˈpjuːtrɪd/

Foul-smelling from decay.

A putrid smell rises from the fish left in the trash.

A woman recoils while pinching her nose above an opened food container holding a visibly decomposed fish.
Etymology
putridLatinrotten

Latin putridus belongs to a family connecting rotting with stinking. The selected meaning keeps those ideas together: the foul smell is associated with material in a state of decay.

In context

LibriVox Audiobooks377:53
There was a putrid smell of dead horses and mules.
Everyman at War. Sixty Personal Narratives of the War by Charles B. Purdom Part 1/3 | Audio Book

More examples

  • We threw away the putrid meat before cooking dinner.
  • The bucket of stagnant water smells putrid.
  • A putrid odor led us to a dead mouse behind the refrigerator.

Forms

putrid

putridity noun — The state of being rotten and foul-smelling.

Similar words

rotten
Describes decay broadly, without necessarily emphasizing a foul smell.
rancid
Specifically describes fats or oils with spoiled smells or tastes.