FETID Synonyms: 57 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'fetid' distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of fetid are fusty , malodorous , musty , noisome , putrid , rank , and stinking . While all these words mean "bad-smelling," stinking and fetid suggest the foul or disgusting. // prisoners were held in stinking cells // the fetid odor of skunk cabbage

Q: How are the words 'fusty' and 'musty' related as synonyms of 'fetid'?

Both fusty and musty suggest lack of fresh air and sunlight, fusty also implying prolonged uncleanliness, musty stressing the effects of dampness, mildew, or age. // a fusty attic // the musty odor of a damp cellar

Q: When would 'malodorous' be a good substitute for 'fetid'?

Although the words malodorous and fetid have much in common, malodorous may range from the unpleasant to the strongly offensive. // malodorous fertilizers

Q: Where would 'noisome' be a reasonable alternative to 'fetid'?

The meanings of noisome and fetid largely overlap; however, noisome adds a suggestion of being harmful or unwholesome as well as offensive. // a stagnant, noisome sewer

Q: When can 'putrid' be used instead of 'fetid'?

While the synonyms putrid and fetid are close in meaning, putrid implies particularly the sickening odor of decaying organic matter. // the putrid smell of rotting fish

Q: When could 'rank' be used to replace 'fetid'?

In some situations, the words rank and fetid are roughly equivalent. However, rank suggests a strong unpleasant smell. // rank cigar smoke

fetid

adjective

ˈfe-təd

Definition of fetid

as in stinking

having an unpleasant smell that fetid cheese from Belgium is definitely an acquired taste

Synonyms & Similar Words

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How is the word fetid distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of fetid are fusty, malodorous, musty, noisome, putrid, rank, and stinking. While all these words mean "bad-smelling," stinking and fetid suggest the foul or disgusting.

prisoners were held in stinking cells

the fetid odor of skunk cabbage

How are the words fusty and musty related as synonyms of fetid?

Both fusty and musty suggest lack of fresh air and sunlight, fusty also implying prolonged uncleanliness, musty stressing the effects of dampness, mildew, or age.

a fusty attic

the musty odor of a damp cellar

When would malodorous be a good substitute for fetid?

Although the words malodorous and fetid have much in common, malodorous may range from the unpleasant to the strongly offensive.

malodorous fertilizers

Where would noisome be a reasonable alternative to fetid?

The meanings of noisome and fetid largely overlap; however, noisome adds a suggestion of being harmful or unwholesome as well as offensive.

a stagnant, noisome sewer

When can putrid be used instead of fetid?

While the synonyms putrid and fetid are close in meaning, putrid implies particularly the sickening odor of decaying organic matter.

the putrid smell of rotting fish

When could rank be used to replace fetid?

In some situations, the words rank and fetid are roughly equivalent. However, rank suggests a strong unpleasant smell.

rank cigar smoke

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of fetid Tired of the stale, fetid air looming over your apartment like a cloud? — Brad Bourque, Wired News, 31 Mar. 2026 The evolutionary advantage of fetid roses was that their odor deterred animal herds that grazed in their habitat. — Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 21 Mar. 2026 The New York Yankees are dealing with a stinky spring training situation after a sewage leak penetrated their clubhouse and outer hallway, and created pools of fetid water around George Steinbrenner Stadium. — Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 22 Feb. 2026 Citizens Energy customers should be on the lookout for a seasonal greeting from the gas and water utility this winter — with a card that is more fetid than festive. — Karl Schneider, IndyStar, 10 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for fetid

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fetid

Adjective

For this argument Thomasine was jailed—stuffed into a damp, stinking, deadly stone cell crawling with rats and lice—to force her to change her beliefs.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
America’s political landscape has become a stinking mess.

— Mary Ellen Klas, Boston Herald, 1 June 2026

Definition of stinking

Adjective

There was a wide stone wall on which someone had placed a row of ripe quinces from a nearby tree.

— E. Tammy Kim, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Le is particularly fond of the store’s Thai green bananas, which remain bright green even when fully ripe and develop an intensely sweet flavor.

— Sara Rosenthal, Denver Post, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of ripe

Adjective

Shohei Ohtani emerged from the visiting dugout at American Family Field with a bat in his hand, and the mass of media members scattered in foul territory up the third-base line shifted his way, pulled by the magnetic force that is Ohtani’s stardom.

— Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Stewart attempted a pickoff throw that went off the glove of first baseman Freddie Freeman and into foul territory for an error, advancing Hamilton to second.

— CBS News, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of foul

Adjective

Westminster’s smelly and musty water is still safe to drink, city officials said.

— Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 5 Oct. 2026
The duo wants to be there for the good, the bad, and the questionably smelly while sprinkling some happy-go-lucky magic over all of it.

— Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of smelly

Adjective

Some orphans, their faces filthy, walked the stands hawking candy.

— Dexter Filkins, New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2026
Myriad violations, from food that should’ve been trashed weeks earlier to filthy equipment, befouled the state inspection of a West Miami-Dade supermarket this week.

— David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of filthy

Adjective

That’s likely to inspire either affection or immediate exhaustion, depending on your fondness for the infamously disgusting performance group.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 8 Oct. 2026
People tend to think of waste as trash, sewage, slag, manure and other seemingly useless or disgusting substances.

— Edward D. Melillo, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of disgusting

Adjective

Stop at Callicoon Wine Merchant for a bottle paired with a stinky cheese on their sunny patio.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Oct. 2026
These repellents are made of stinky smells and bad flavors that deer do not like, like potassium sorbate, whole egg solids, thyme oil, garlic, and sodium lauryl sulfate.

— Michelle Mastro, Martha Stewart, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of stinky

Browse Nearby Words

fetes

fetid

fetidness

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“Fetid.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fetid. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of fetid

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