effluvium

[ih-floo-vee-uh m]

See more synonyms for effluvium 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.

Origin of effluvium

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

Related formsef·flu·vi·al, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for effluvia

exhaust, odor, vapor, smell, exhalation

Examples from the Web for effluvia

Contemporary Examples of effluvia

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

Historical Examples of effluvia

That trace of effluvia which in force could sicken a Terran, was his guide.
Storm Over Warlock
Andre Norton
The streets and alleys reeked with the effluvia of a slave ship's between-decks.
Looking Backward
Edward Bellamy
I tell you, Kerr, added she, the effluvia from your shop is insupportable.
Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume 19
Various
Zoz perfume, now so close to him, made him feel dizzy with its effluvia.
Two banks of the Seine
Fernand Vandrem
The communication of disease, either by personal contact with the sick or by means of effluvia arising from their bodies.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I
Arnold Cooley

British Dictionary definitions for effluvia

effluvium

noun plural -via (-vɪə) or -viums

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

Derived Formseffluvial, 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

Word Origin and History for effluvia

Latin plural of effluvium.

effluvium

1640s, from Latin effluvium "a flowing out," from effluere (see effluence).

effluvia in Medicine

effluvium

[ĭ-flōō′vē-əm]

n. pl. ef•flu•vi•ums

A shedding, especially of hair.
An exhalation, especially one of bad odor or injurious influence. No longer in technical use.