Definition of noisomenext
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as in poisonous
bad for the well-being of the body it's no fun having asthma and living in an area with noisome smog

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word noisome distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of noisome are fetid, fusty, malodorous, musty, putrid, rank, and stinking. While all these words mean "bad-smelling," noisome adds a suggestion of being harmful or unwholesome as well as offensive.

a stagnant, noisome sewer

How do fusty and musty relate to one another, in the sense of noisome?

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 could malodorous be used to replace noisome?

The words malodorous and noisome are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, malodorous may range from the unpleasant to the strongly offensive.

malodorous fertilizers

When might putrid be a better fit than noisome?

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

the putrid smell of rotting fish

When is it sensible to use rank instead of noisome?

While in some cases nearly identical to noisome, rank suggests a strong unpleasant smell.

rank cigar smoke

How are the words stinking and fetid related as synonyms of noisome?

Both stinking and fetid suggest the foul or disgusting.

prisoners were held in stinking cells
the fetid odor of skunk cabbage

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 noisome Having gone in the tank for Griffin, North Carolina’s highest courts are a noisome example of why partisanship ought to have no place in judicial selection. Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 13 May 2025 To question the sincerity of the president’s rhetoric—and that of his party—is not to dismiss the challenge posed by the various noisome currents of antidemocratic sentiment and behavior running through our politics like the effluence of overflowing sewers. Gerard Baker, WSJ, 7 Nov. 2022 Performers like Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity, who long ago bartered their integrity and believability for money and ratings, can peddle their noisome pro-Trump propaganda on Fox News. Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2022 But Trudeau is using it to get rid of a political headache: the loud, noisome, but nonviolent blockade of bridges in Canada and the downtown of the nation’s capital. Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 16 Feb. 2022 But her water bowl is filled with a noisome black, brackish liquid — what has fouled it, and for how long, is anyone’s guess. Gene Weingarten, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2021 And there were some years where his fame was turned infamous by serious accusations of the most noisome acts. Ashley Cullins, Billboard, 3 May 2021 Farmers agreed to reduce the emissions of the country’s noisome pigs. The Economist, 9 July 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for noisome
Adjective
  • Critics at its first press screening called the film disgusting, accusing it of exploiting both its oblivious subjects and the beloved former first lady.
    Rosemary Counter, Vanity Fair, 25 Feb. 2026
  • Just last week the president tweeted a vile and disgusting image of President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, and refuses to apologize.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
  • Their solution to a stinking run was, comically, to rely on less than 23 per cent of possession and pick Madrid off with a classy volley from Martin Satriano, below.
    Phil Hay, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2026
  • 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
Adjective
  • And in Season 11, before the game even started, castaways hiked 11 miles through the Guatemalan jungle—a 24-hour trek in 100-degree heat that resulted in one collapse, one biceps tear, one vomiting spell, and one puncture wound from a poisonous tree barb.
    Kristen Geil, Outside, 24 Feb. 2026
  • This was always a question of what happens to this friend group when there’s a poisonous dynamic at the center?
    Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
  • Perhaps the most ugly truth of human spaceflight is that the ISS is old and its days are numbered.
    Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 6 Mar. 2026
  • Okay, let’s get into the other good, bad, and ugly from episode 2 of Survivor 50, and — shameless plug alert!
    Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • Hurley argued the lack of a foul call and was whistled for two technical fouls before heading to the locker room while shaking his head.
    ABC News, ABC News, 7 Mar. 2026
  • Lee forces a foul call after a drive to the rim.
    American-Statesman staff, Austin American Statesman, 7 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • From invasive species to blooms with toxic compounds, these are the six perennial flowers our gardening experts warn against.
    Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 7 Mar. 2026
  • There’s good that can come from that — the engagement, the creativity — but some bad too, like when things get toxic.
    Yvonne Villarreal, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • At the bottom of the Olympia delle Tofane slope, in the grandstands about 2,000 feet below, there was nothing but a sickening silence after Vonn’s crash.
    Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2026
  • The rest of us could only imagine Randall’s sickening embarrassment at needing to testify at the trial.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
  • However, these newer deodorants marketed as whole-body deodorants often do a good job at deodorizing the areas that create malodorous smells.
    ABC News, ABC News, 3 Mar. 2026
  • Vermin, malodorous airs and other issues caused 14 Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach restaurants to fail inspection last week.
    David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 31 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Noisome.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/noisome. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.

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