Definition of NOXIOUS

Choose the Right Synonym for noxious

pernicious, baneful, noxious, deleterious, detrimental mean exceedingly harmful. pernicious implies irreparable harm done through evil or insidious corrupting or undermining. the claim that pornography has a pernicious effect on society baneful implies injury through poisoning or destroying. the baneful notion that discipline destroys creativity noxious applies to what is both offensive and injurious to the health of a body or mind. noxious chemical fumes deleterious applies to what has an often unsuspected harmful effect. a diet found to have deleterious effects detrimental implies obvious harmfulness to something specified. the detrimental effects of excessive drinking

Examples of noxious in a Sentence

mixing bleach and ammonia can cause noxious fumes that can seriously harm you noxious smog that for years has been encrusting the historic cathedral with soot

Recent Examples on the Web

Any remedy for the noxious odors attributed to the Jefferson Parish landfill will take several months, if not years, to put in place and would cost millions of dollars. — Greg Larose, nola.com, "Jefferson landfill odor fix could take several months, cost millions," 20 June 2019 Then, a move had to be made through the claustrophobic sewers, measuring less than a meter-wide toward the bank that could at any time get filled with water or noxious vapors. — Raf Casert, The Seattle Times, "A tunnel, a hole in the floor: Belgium ponders bank heist," 4 Feb. 2019 With Christmas once again a year away, stocking stuffers look suspiciously like trash; for just one day, on December 26, Winter Candy Apple and Gingerbread Swirl eclipse the noxious smell of garbage. — Jamie Lauren Keiles, Vox, "The bleak hope of the day-after-Christmas sale," 27 Dec. 2018 Post after post details how a kindly camper owner has cleaned, flushed, and added holding tank deodorant—yet, much to their dismay, a noxious smell still permeates their home on wheels. — Megan Barber, Curbed, "RV toilets: Why I’ll never have a bathroom in my camper," 1 Nov. 2018 Emma’s plant, a notorious Virginia tier one noxious weed, is not alone in the commonwealth. — Justin Wm. Moyer, Washington Post, "‘Don’t touch it’: Invasive plant with sap that can cause blindness found in Virginia," 19 June 2018 The heavy rain expected from Hurricane Florence could flood hog manure pits, coal ash dumps and other industrial sites in North Carolina, creating a noxious witches’ brew of waste that might wash into homes and threaten drinking water supplies. — Michael Biesecker, Fox News, "Hurricane could flood many waste sites, creating toxic brew," 12 Sep. 2018 And, whenever possible, use nontoxic cleaning supplies, which don’t give off noxious fumes. — Jennifer Fernandez, House Beautiful, "6 Nursery-Decorating Mistakes To Avoid For Your Baby’s Health," 19 Dec. 2018 The noxious weed is covered in toxic sap that can cause painful burns and scarring when exposed to UV light from the sun. — Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, "QUIZ: Can You Identify These Dangerous Summer Plants and Bugs?," 3 Aug. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'noxious.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for noxious

Middle English noxius, borrowed from Latin noxius "guilty, delinquent, harmful, injurious" (derivative of noxa "injurious behavior, harm, mischief") + -us -ous; noxa derivative (perhaps with -s- as a desiderative suffix) from the base of nocēre "to damage (things), injure, harm (persons)," going back to Indo-European *noḱ-éi̯e- "destroy" (with semantic weakening in Latin), whence also Sanskrit nāśáyati "(s/he) destroys," causative derivatives from a verbal base *neḱ- "disappear, pass out of existence, perish," whence, with varying ablaut grades, Sanskrit náśyati "(s/he) is lost, perishes," Avestan nąsat̰ "has gone away, is lost," Tocharian B näk- "destroy," (in middle voice) "disappear, be destroyed"

Note: The Indo-European verbal base *neḱ- is also the source of a root noun attested as Latin nec-, nex "violent death, killing"; see necro-.