1
as in stinking
having an unpleasant smell
musty old gym socks
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cliche
used or heard so often as to be dull
the musty prose of writers who use the same expressions over and over
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of musty
The air was thick with the elephants’ musty smell, and low-frequency rumbles rolled like thunder across the gale.
—
Chris Schalkx, AFAR Media, 20 Aug. 2025
What could be a musty museum piece in some hands is instead an involving trip in the theatrical time machine, propelled by powerful performances and transporting technical choices.
—Rob Hubbard, Twin Cities, 18 Aug. 2025
The following warning signs should be checked for by dealerships, according to AAA.
Damp and musty odors.
—Sofia Joseph, jsonline.com, 15 Aug. 2025
At the program’s outset, Felt tried to help the kids’ understanding by offering some musty statistics.
—Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune, 30 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for musty
Chris Schalkx, AFAR Media, 20 Aug. 2025
What could be a musty museum piece in some hands is instead an involving trip in the theatrical time machine, propelled by powerful performances and transporting technical choices.
—Rob Hubbard, Twin Cities, 18 Aug. 2025
The following warning signs should be checked for by dealerships, according to AAA.
Damp and musty odors.
—Sofia Joseph, jsonline.com, 15 Aug. 2025
At the program’s outset, Felt tried to help the kids’ understanding by offering some musty statistics.
—Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune, 30 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for musty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for musty
Adjective
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This is about a team with a top-10 payroll whose GM committed too stinking much of it to dogs that can’t, or won’t, pull the sled.—
Sean Keeler,
The Denver Post,
22 Dec. 2019
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Muttaiah said the man inside the stinking manhole was working without any safety equipment — no gloves, no shoes, no supplemental oxygen.—
Joanna Slater,
Washington Post,
16 Dec. 2019
Adjective
-
Saint-Tropez’s Hotel Byblos teamed up with Globe-Trotter to make a suitcase, while Le Bristol in Paris created a highly wearable capsule collection with Sporty & Rich aimed at injecting some youthful joie de vivre into the sometimes fusty five-star hotel.—
Mark Ellwood,
Robb Report,
19 July 2025
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While Reichardt never pushes for comedy, these fusty parental exchanges are often very funny, as are J.B.’s bad-parenting episodes with the boys.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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Several leaders described the pressure of being both highly visible and easily stereotyped.—
Benjamin Laker,
Forbes.com,
13 May 2025
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At the time, Latinos were often cast in stereotyped roles with heavy accents and largely denied the opportunity to direct features.—
Maximilíano Durón,
ARTnews.com,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
For its part, the NFL says those markets are ripe for monetary distortion or manipulation.—
Contessa Brewer,Alex Sherman,
CNBC,
11 Sep. 2025
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From these experiences, Austen must have concluded that throwing together a play was a ripe scenario for generating drama and tension between a close set of characters in her fiction.—
Emily Zarevich,
JSTOR Daily,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Reed got her first gig at Cataloochee at the age of 19 in 1996 and has never tired of the work.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
14 Sep. 2025
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Manning’s inefficiency was on full display, and the Longhorns faithful grew tired of it during the first half.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Prequels have become rather commonplace in sci-fi these days, offering us a window into the event that shaped the world of the original story.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
15 Sep. 2025
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British and English flags have also become commonplace in cities and towns across the nation in tandem with the protests.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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An alkaline compound, baking soda is a non-toxic cleaner with a coarseness that works wonders for scrubbing grime, removing difficult stains, and deodorizing stinky odors.—
Lauren David,
Southern Living,
9 Sep. 2025
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This $8 set comes with four zippered pouches that can separate dirty, wet, or stinky shoes from the rest of your belongings.—
Amelia McBride,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Trauma is not a hackneyed literary trope in the work of Miriam Toews.—
Lorrie Moore,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Sep. 2025
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Similarly, the billionaire-villain forgery subplot and the insertion of romance into team dynamics came across as forced, hackneyed and unnecessary.—
Karl Moore,
Forbes.com,
3 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Musty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/musty. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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