fusty

American  

[fuhs-tee] / ˈfʌs ti /

adjective

fustier, fustiest

1. 

   having a stale smell; moldy; musty.

   fusty rooms that were in need of a good airing.

   Synonyms:

   malodorous, smelly, oppressive, stuffy, close

2. old-fashioned or out-of-date, as architecture, furnishings, or the like.

   They still live in that fusty, gingerbread house.

3. stubbornly conservative or old-fashioned; fogyish.

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fusty British  

/ ˈfʌstɪ /

adjective

1. smelling of damp or mould; musty

2. old-fashioned in attitude

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Other Word Forms

• fustiness
  noun
• fustily
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of fusty

1350–1400; Middle English fusti, equivalent to fust (noun) < Old French: wine cask, tree trunk (< Latin fūstis stick, pole) + -y ¹

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Explanation

Use the adjective fusty to describe something that's covered with dust and smells a little old and musty. Your grandmother's attic is probably full of fusty knickknacks. Fusty is perfect for describing anything from a slightly mildewed quilt at the back of your closet to your brother's camping gear, forgotten in the trunk of his car for months and smelling a little ripe. You can also use it to talk about an antique idea or attitude, like your uncle's fusty, outdated opinions on the roles of men and women. The Old French root of fusty is fusté, "tasting or smelling of the cask," from fuist, "wine cask."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fusty fustier fustiest

Widow’s Bay is indeed a fusty place where everyone drives old cars, uses ancient computers and communicates on walkies and landlines since neither cell phones nor Wi-Fi connectivity works.

From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2026

But classic feels too fusty and self-conscious, even though “Hokum” has all the tropes: looming figures, clanging bells, ominous dumbwaiters.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026

Pilates, which combines stretching and body weight conditioning exercises, has, for some, a fusty image - a gentle and genteel workout for those of advancing years.

From BBC ● Feb. 11, 2026

The policing techniques satirized in the film may be futuristic, but its structure is fusty.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 22, 2026

I hadn’t expected him to be so fusty.

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

They are pleasurable to behold, in their own way, if a bit fustier than those of Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc in “Knives Out.”

From Washington Post ● Feb. 7, 2022

Hotel developers have started to replace some of the fustier features, such as mini-bars and room service, with more modern ones, such as nightstands with USB ports and lobby lounges.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 10, 2016

Her main task was to update Roget's often Victorian language, deleting some of the fustier phrases, adding or redefining 20,000 others, including, for example, Watergate, streaking, hype and quadraphonic sound.

From Time Magazine Archive

Savvy viewers, though, will intuit the title’s missing question mark, understanding that Michael Myers, one of cinema’s fustiest boogeymen, is unlikely to remain interred for long.

From New York Times ● Oct. 13, 2022

To Cambridge partisans, Markle was a wrecking ball masquerading as a smiley face emoji, impatient to bend one of history’s fustiest institutions to her iron will.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 23, 2022

My destination was Black Mountain, the fustiest and most unreconstructed ski area in New Hampshire’s White Mountains.

From New York Times ● Jan. 21, 2020

Only the fustiest of traditionalists would grouch at the news that Joseph Papp's musical irregulars from the New York Shakespeare Festival have decided to give Boheme an airing out.

From Time Magazine Archive

The beginning of a new era at The Washington Post might be traced to a private conversation between two old friends in January at that fustiest of Washington insider rituals, the annual Alfalfa Club dinner.

From Washington Post

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