effluvium

[ ih-floo-vee-uhm ]
See synonyms for: effluviumeffluvia on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural ef·flu·vi·a [ih-floo-vee-uh], /ɪˈflu vi ə/, ef·flu·vi·ums.
  1. a slight or invisible exhalation or vapor, especially one that is disagreeable or noxious.

Origin of effluvium

1
1640–50; <Latin, equivalent to ef-ef- + fluv-, base of fluere to flow (see effluent) + -ium-ium

Other words from effluvium

  • ef·flu·vi·al, adjective

Words Nearby effluvium

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use effluvium in a sentence

  • It is the moral effluvium out of which our modern civilization has constructed itself.

  • He shook a musty effluvium from his piebald clothes, overturned my inkstand, and went on with his insufferable nonsense.

    Sixes and Sevens | O. Henry
  • His defensive armour is found in the fetid effluvium which, by a muscular exertion, he is capable of ejecting upon his pursuer.

    The Desert Home | Mayne Reid
  • The whole atmosphere of the islet, as well as a large circle around it, was impregnated with the fearful effluvium.

    The Hunters' Feast | Mayne Reid
  • Its effluvium offended only one sense, affected only one set of sensation nerves.

    Operation Terror | William Fitzgerald Jenkins

British Dictionary definitions for effluvium

effluvium

/ (ɛˈfluːvɪəm) /


nounplural -via (-vɪə) or -viums
  1. an unpleasant smell or exhalation, as of gaseous waste or decaying matter

Origin of effluvium

1
C17: from Latin: a flowing out; see effluent

Derived forms of effluvium

  • effluvial, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012