putrefaction

[ pyoo-truh-fak-shuhn ]

/ ˌpyu trəˈfæk ʃən /

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See synonyms for: putrefaction / putrefactive on Thesaurus.com

noun

the act or process of putrefying; the anaerobic decomposition of organic matter by bacteria and fungi that results in obnoxiously odorous products; rotting.

the state of being putrefied; decay.

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Origin of putrefaction

1350–1400; Middle English <Late Latin putrefactiōn- (stem of putrefactiō) a rotting, equivalent to Latin putrefact(us) (past participle of putrefacere to putrefy) + -iōn--ion

OTHER WORDS FROM putrefaction

pu·tre·fac·tive, pu·tre·fa·cient

[pyoo-truh-fey-shuhnt], /ˌpyu trəˈfeɪ ʃənt/, adjective

Words nearby putrefaction

put out to grass, put over, put paid to, put-put, Putrajaya, putrefaction, putrefy, putrescent, putrescible, putrescine, putrid

How to use putrefaction in a sentence

In the putrefaction stage of corpse decomposition, bodies release several liters of water as well as a vast range of heavy metals in a brownish-gray liquid called cemetery leachate.
COVID-19 is overcrowding cemeteries and causing heavy metal pollution|Anuradha Varanasi|February 12, 2022|Popular-Science
As a result, humans kept the products of bacterial putrefaction in their intestines for too long and they became toxic.
The Man Who Drank Cholera and Launched the Yogurt Craze - Issue 100: Outsiders|Lina Zeldovich|May 19, 2021|Nautilus
This intestinal putrefaction theory gained such prominence that British surgeon William Lane advocated the removal of the entire large intestine to remediate digestive disorders.
The Man Who Drank Cholera and Launched the Yogurt Craze - Issue 100: Outsiders|Lina Zeldovich|May 19, 2021|Nautilus
Her hands were shaking, slick and black with subdead putrefaction.
The Extinction Parade: An Original Zombie Story by Max Brooks|Max Brooks|January 14, 2011|DAILY BEAST

Diminished hydrochloric acid favors intestinal putrefaction.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
Molds, however, in feeding do cause chemical changes which result in decay or putrefaction.
A Civic Biology|George William Hunter
In the pancreas after putrefaction, and in the fces of typhus patients, no skatol was found.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I|Arnold Cooley
Ammonia is derived from the putrefaction of animal and vegetable substances.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I|Arnold Cooley
Sudden putrefaction of meat takes place at a temperature of thirty-five degrees below zero.
Library Notes|A. P. Russell