perfume
Americannoun
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perfumes
plural
-
a substance, extract, or preparation for diffusing or imparting an agreeable or attractive smell, especially a fluid containing fragrant natural oils extracted from flowers, woods, etc., or similar synthetic oils.
-
the scent, odor, or volatile particles emitted by substances that smell agreeable.
- Antonyms:
- stench
verb (used with object)
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perfumes,
present (3rd person singular)
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perfumed,
past participle, past
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perfuming
present participle
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(of substances, flowers, etc.) to impart a pleasant fragrance to.
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to impregnate with a sweet odor; scent.
noun
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a mixture of alcohol and fragrant essential oils extracted from flowers, spices, etc, or made synthetically, used esp to impart a pleasant long-lasting scent to the body, stationery, etc See also cologne toilet water
-
a scent or odour, esp a fragrant one
verb
Synonym Usage
Perfume, aroma, fragrance all refer to agreeable odors. Perfume often indicates a strong, rich smell, natural or manufactured: the perfume of flowers. Fragrance is usually applied to fresh, delicate, and delicious odors, especially from growing things: fragrance of new-mown hay. Aroma is restricted to a somewhat spicy smell: the aroma of coffee.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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perfumesimple
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perfumessimple
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have perfumedperfect
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has perfumedperfect
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am perfumingprogressive
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are perfumingprogressive
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is perfumingprogressive
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have been perfumingperfect progressive
-
has been perfumingperfect progressive
Past
-
perfumedsimple
-
had perfumedperfect
-
was perfumingprogressive
-
were perfumingprogressive
-
had been perfumingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of perfume
First recorded in 1525–35; earlier parfume (noun), from Middle French parfum, noun derivative of parfumer (verb), from obsolete Italian parfumare (modern profumare ). See per-, fume
Explanation
That delicious mid-summer smell in the middle of a rose garden? You can call that its perfume. If you apply scented oil to your neck and wrists before leaving your house every the morning, you know what perfume is. Another kind of perfume is one that doesn't come in a bottle, like the smell of your mom's cinnamon rolls or the salty fragrance of the ocean after a storm. The earliest use of perfume in English specifically meant "the smell of something burning," and the Latin root is smoky as well: fumare means "to smoke" and per means "through."
Vocabulary lists containing perfume
The Nose Knows: Olfactory Vocabulary
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Smell Words
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Unit 16
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He also admitted stealing items of NHS branded clothing, a pager, and perfume.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Yes, they do, for perfume and for investing.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
Before perfume, there was incense—in fact, the origin of the word perfume is per fumum, a Latin term meaning “through smoke.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026
The powder clings beautifully to potatoes before roasting, the dried dairy helping to encourage browning while the herbs perfume every bite.
From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2026
Its heady perfume overwhelmed my senses and I felt dizzy for a moment.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
The oil perfumes the whole pan with garlic and tomato while adding a subtle richness to the eggs themselves.
From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026
The company sends customers seasonal perfumes four times a year, packaged with a sample kit and the full-size perfume in a separate, sealed box.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026
There have been reports of an uptick in luxury goods such as Chanel cosmetics and perfumes circulating among wealthy North Koreans, while fur coats have become popular in a city bordering China.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
At another wholesale mall, iridescent streamers and gold mirror balls hung from the ceiling of Wen Linpeng's shop selling colourful soap bars, perfumes and make-up products.
From Barron's ● Apr. 23, 2026
Sarai eyed the shelf of her mother’s paints and perfumes.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
Perhaps the book’s greatest feat is its depiction of the historical moment when the modern overpowered the ancient—a world, now lost, of floridly costumed courtiers, fabled princes, exotic vices and perfumed palaces.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026
John Lavelle exudes a perfumed whiff of modern camp in his portrayal of Orsini-Rosenberg, the fussy, backstabbing director of the Imperial Opera.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026
The steakhouse creamed spinach, perfumed with nutmeg and unapologetically rich.
From Salon ● Feb. 18, 2026
Outside the clinic, in a "Koala Rehab Centre" faintly perfumed by eucalyptus leaves, is a three-year-old recovering from a hysterectomy.
From BBC ● Dec. 29, 2024
Another wiped her mouth with a perfumed handkerchief.
From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri
Off heat, fold in lemon zest — the volatile oils hit the warm crumbs and bloom instantly, perfuming them.
From Salon ● Feb. 24, 2026
Thick smoke of burning incense penetrates the room, perfuming everything sacred.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2023
I complained to my mom about how the sharp, sweet smell was perfuming my kitchen and living room, and she suggested slicing and saving them in the freezer.
From Salon ● Mar. 24, 2022
Just as life veers into lockdown, Tookie is riding home with her husband, Chinese takeout perfuming the car as they drive down the dark, “empty, peaceful streets” of Minneapolis.
From New York Times ● Nov. 9, 2021
They would arrive earlier than the others and spend the morning shaving him, giving him massages with hot towels, cutting and polishing the nails on his hands and feet, and perfuming him with toilet water.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
