effluvium

noun

e-ˈflü-vē-əm How to pronounce effluvium (audio)
variants also effluvia
Definition of effluviumnext
as in debris
discarded or useless material the effluvia from local sewage treatment plants polluting the river

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for effluvium
  1. debris
  2. garbage
  3. sewage
  4. trash
  5. dust
  6. rubbish
  7. junk
Noun
  • Rojas has witnessed two people being pulled alive from the debris, as well as the recovery of bodies.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Photos of the outside cemetery show flooding and floating debris.
    — Dave Savini, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of debris
Noun
  • Marcy had her hair tied up with a bow made from nylon cord and was bent over a fold-up kitchen counter rearranging wet garbage.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Polls show Farage is still likely to win, but that Count Binface — a spoof candidate who wears a garbage pail on his head — may get around 20-percent of the vote.
    — Lauren Frayer, NPR, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of garbage
Noun
  • Paved sidewalks, sewage systems and wastewater treatment plant.
    — Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026
  • His job hauling buckets of sewage from the latrines was no fun.
    — Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of sewage
Noun
  • Experts encourage people living in bear-prone areas to lock doors, keep trash and other food sources stored in bear-proof containers and avoid putting out bird feeders.
    — John Moritz, Hartford Courant, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Remove any unsecured trash, food and strongly-scented items including sunscreen, deodorant and Chapstick from your vehicles and yard.
    — David Caraccio, Sacbee.com, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of trash
Noun
  • And in a bedroom, tucked behind the door and covered in dust, hung a nondescript print in a black and brown frame.
    — Cole Reynolds, Washington Post, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Videos posted to social media showed buildings collapsing and panicked residents running and screaming, as dust filled the sky.
    — Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of dust
Noun
  • This comes at the expense of no movement in the wrist, but to be fair, having the lightsaber pointed in any other direction would look rubbish.
    — Matt Gardner, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026
  • Only construction waste will be accepted at the landfill such as, brush and rubbish, concrete, brick, rock, wood, paper, plastics, cardboard and roofing shingles and tiles.
    — Elizabeth Campbell, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 July 2026
Definition of rubbish
Noun
  • This emerging capability could prove crucial not only for extending the longevity of one-of-a-kind missions but also for mitigating the growing threat of space junk from derelict spacecraft abandoned in Earth orbits.
    — Tom Metcalfe, Scientific American, 18 Aug. 2026
  • If the piece isn’t in good working condition, arrange a pick-up from a junk removal service or drop the item off at a recycling center or scrap yard.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of junk
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

effluents
effluvium
effort
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Effluvium.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/effluvium. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on effluvium

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about effluvium

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of balmy

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Is “GIF” Pronounced “Jiff” or “Giff”?

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All