noxious

[nok-shuhs]

adjective

1. harmful or injurious to health or physical well-being.

   noxious fumes.

   Synonyms: deleterious, detrimental, nocuous, unhealthy, unwholesome, hurtful
   Antonyms: harmless

2. morally harmful; corrupting; pernicious.

   a noxious plan to spread dissension.

   Synonyms: corruptive
   Antonyms: harmless

noxious

/ ˈnɒkʃəs /

adjective

1. poisonous or harmful

2. harmful to the mind or morals; corrupting

Other Word Forms

• noxiously adverb
• noxiousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of noxious¹

1605–15; < Latin noxius harmful, hurtful, injurious, equivalent to nox ( a ) harm, hurt, injury (akin to nocēre to do harm, inflict injury; innocent ) + -ius -ious

Word History and Origins

Origin of noxious¹

C17: from Latin noxius harmful, from noxa injury

Example Sentences

A vast canyon of buried garbage has been smoldering inside a landfill in the Santa Clarita Valley, inducing geysers of liquid waste onto the surface and noxious fumes into the air.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But if you do get stuck, make sure snow does not block the exhaust, because noxious fumes can leak into the vehicle.

Read more on BBC

A large swath of the country, from eastern Washington to western Arkansas, is currently facing an avalanche of hard and spiky bouncing beach-balls of the noxious, unpleasant weed.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The depressing reality is that the noxious notions of Messrs. Carlson and Fuentes, while nowhere near dominant on the American right, have been gaining in popularity.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Most young conservatives—like most Americans—don’t even know who he is, let alone embrace his noxious ideas.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• corrupting www.thesaurus.com
• destructive 
• fetid 
• harmful 
• pernicious 
• poisonous 
• putrid 
• toxic 
• unhealthy 
• virulent