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noxious

[ nok-shuhs ]
/ ˈnɒk ʃəs /
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR noxious ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

harmful or injurious to health or physical well-being: noxious fumes.
morally harmful; corrupting; pernicious: a noxious plan to spread dissension.

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RELATED WORDS

putrid, destructive, unhealthy, corrupting, poisonous, fetid, harmful, virulent, toxic, pernicious, baneful, dangerous, deleterious, detrimental, foul, hurtful, noisome, pestiferous, pestilent, sickly

Nearby words

  1. nowruz,
  2. nowt,
  3. nowty,
  4. nowy,
  5. nox,
  6. noxiously,
  7. noyade,
  8. noyau,
  9. noyes,
  10. noyes, alfred

Origin of noxious

1605–15; < Latin noxius harmful, hurtful, injurious, equivalent to nox(a) harm, hurt, injury (akin to nocēre to do harm, inflict injury; see innocent) + -ius -ious
ANTONYMS FOR noxious
1, 2. harmless.
SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR noxious ON THESAURUS.COM
Related formsnox·ious·ly, adverbnox·ious·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for noxious

British Dictionary definitions for noxious

noxious

/ (ˈnɒkʃəs) /

adjective

poisonous or harmful
harmful to the mind or morals; corrupting
Derived Formsnoxiously, adverbnoxiousness, noun

Word Origin for noxious

C17: from Latin noxius harmful, from noxa injury
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 noxious

noxious

adj.

c.1500, from Latin noxius "hurtful, injurious," from noxa "injury, hurt, damage entailing liability" (related to nocere "to hurt," and to nex "slaughter"), from PIE *nek-ro-, causative form of root *nek- "death" (see necro-).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for noxious

noxious

[ nŏk′shəs ]

adj.

Harmful to living things; injurious to health.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.