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.
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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
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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
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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:
Yes, they do, for perfume and for investing.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
The Willy Chavarria show was air-conditioned, pumped with Xinú perfume and felt expensive.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
He also said that their two children reminded him of "the best" of Michelle and that they "ask for her perfume so they can still smell her".
From BBC ● May 20, 2026
Maybe one person’s stink is another’s perfume; maybe we’ve gone nose-blind to all fetidness.
From Salon ● May 14, 2026
He’s only been gone a couple days, but he’d give anything to catch a whiff of the flowery perfume Shenice started wearing at the beginning of the year, or hear one of Drake’s corny jokes.
From "Clean Getaway" by Nic Stone
There are sections devoted to almost everything: fresh fish brought in that morning from the Gulf, dates from southern Iran, imported electronics, perfumes, household goods, and traditional Bandari clothing.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
The oil perfumes the whole pan with garlic and tomato while adding a subtle richness to the eggs themselves.
From Salon ● Jun. 11, 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
Add “volatile organic compounds,” which come from cars, paints, industrial processing, perfumes, cleaning supplies — just open your cabinets and you’ll find some.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 26, 2026
It is strange to be out this early, but the familiar scent of almond sweets that perfumes our town calms me.
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
Maybe it’s perfumed with orange zest and cinnamon.
From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2026
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
For now, Estrada and Kolding are basking in their perfumed frontyard.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2025
Follow your nose through a garden, and pay attention to what memories are triggered: spring lilacs and newly turned soil, freshly cut lawn and lazy summer days perfumed with lavender, the damp decay of autumn.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 9, 2024
The heavily perfumed smoke in the room was making him feel sleepy and stupid.
From "Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban" by J.K. Rowling
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
They began to crawl along the gritty, unsavory New York City sidewalk, led by a marshal perfuming the air and sweeping the ground before them — and serenaded by a trumpeter playing melancholic riffs.
From New York Times ● Sep. 22, 2019
But today, without floral shampoo and conditioner perfuming the air, I realized the cavernous room smelled like sawdust.
From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken
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.
