effluvium

[ ih-floo-vee-uhm ]

/ ɪˈflu vi əm /

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See synonyms for: effluvium / effluvia on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural ef·flu·vi·a

[ih-floo-vee-uh], /ɪˈflu vi ə/, ef·flu·vi·ums.

a slight or invisible exhalation or vapor, especially one that is disagreeable or noxious.

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Origin of effluvium

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use effluvium in a sentence

As an Ebola patient slips from bad to worse to dire, he can expel as many as two and a half gallons of effluvia a day.
Ebola Nurses Are As Brave As Soldiers|Michael Daly|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Several instances have come under my observation which justify the assertion that the disease cannot be propagated by effluvia.
An Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolae Vaccinae|Edward Jenner
Of the offensive nature of animal effluvia, the senses of every one who enters a crowded assembly, must immediately convince him.
The Book of Curiosities|I. Platts
The perfume of Paris and the effluvia of death intermingled are sufficient to breed a pestilence!
The Sorrows of Satan|Marie Corelli

The fresh air has the power of removing much of the noxious effluvia received from the body by the clothing.
A Treatise on Domestic Economy|Catherine Esther Beecher
It was a dusky night, I could not prevent his being assailed by the evening effluvia of Edinburgh.
Rowlandson the Caricaturist. First Volume|Joseph Grego

British Dictionary definitions for effluvium

effluvium

/ (ɛˈfluːvɪəm) /

noun plural -via (-vɪə) or -viums

an unpleasant smell or exhalation, as of gaseous waste or decaying matter

Derived forms of effluvium

effluvial, adjective

Word Origin for effluvium

C17: from Latin: a flowing out; see effluent

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

effluvium

Origin of effluvium

OTHER WORDS FROM effluvium

Words related to effluvium

How to use effluvium in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for effluvium

Derived forms of effluvium

Word Origin for effluvium