as in decomposition
the process by which dead organic matter separates into simpler substances
clearing the refrigerator of what the previous tenant had left behind was like taking a course in the advanced putrefaction of leftovers
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Recent Examples of putrefaction
Kellogg’s thinking on constipation, that anything less than three bowel movements a day risked dangerous intestinal putrefaction, was shaped by the emerging germ theory of disease and the ascent of bacteriology as a discipline through the closing decades of the 19th century.
—
Elsa Richardson, TIME, 3 Oct. 2024
Here was an artist drawn irresistibly to executions and corpses, dismemberment and putrefaction.
—airmail.news, 20 Apr. 2024
Not the smell of putrefaction, though the novel is littered with rotting corpses.
—Nathaniel Rich, The New York Review of Books, 30 Nov. 2023
Gut bacteria, especially a class of microbes called Clostridia, spread through your organs and digest you from the inside out in a process called putrefaction.
—Jennifer Debruyn, The Conversation, 28 Sep. 2023
See All Example Sentences for putrefaction
Elsa Richardson, TIME, 3 Oct. 2024
Here was an artist drawn irresistibly to executions and corpses, dismemberment and putrefaction.
—airmail.news, 20 Apr. 2024
Not the smell of putrefaction, though the novel is littered with rotting corpses.
—Nathaniel Rich, The New York Review of Books, 30 Nov. 2023
Gut bacteria, especially a class of microbes called Clostridia, spread through your organs and digest you from the inside out in a process called putrefaction.
—Jennifer Debruyn, The Conversation, 28 Sep. 2023
See All Example Sentences for putrefaction
Recent Examples of Synonyms for putrefaction
Noun
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After extinguishing the fire, officials found Robert Hill, 44, deceased with severe burns, apparent head trauma, and signs of decomposition, according to Melesa Johnson with the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office.—
Noelle Alviz-Gransee,
Kansas City Star,
29 Sep. 2025
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Authorities located a body in the front trunk of the Tesla that was in a state of decomposition, LAPD sources said.—
Alex Stone,
ABC News,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Its decay produces flashes of light in the detector that can mimic potential dark matter signals.—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
2 Oct. 2025
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These radioisotopes spontaneously transform into different elements and release radiation – energetic particles or light – in a process called radioactive decay.—
Andrea Richard,
The Conversation,
2 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Putrefaction.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/putrefaction. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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