English Explanatory Dictionary

stench

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. a strong foul smell; a stink.
  2. A foul quality.
  3. A smell or odour, not necessarily bad.
verb
  1. To cause to emit a disagreeable odour; to cause to stink.
  2. To stanch.

Pronunciation

/stɛnt͡ʃ/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-stench.wav

Word forms

stench stenches stenching stenched

Etymology

From Middle English stench, from Old English stenċ (“stench, odor, fragrance”), from Proto-Germanic *stankwiz (“smell, fragrance, odor”), from Proto-Indo-European *stengʷ- (“to push, thrust”). Cognate with Dutch stank (“stench, odor”), German Stank, Gestank (“stench, odor, smell”), Danish stank (“stench”), Swedish stank (“stench”), Icelandic stækja (“stench”).

Synonyms

fetor funk malodor niff nosesore reek stench stink pong

Antonyms

aroma fragrance perfume

Related words

asafoetida garlic polecat skunk stoat malodorous

Derived words

stench bomb stenchcore stenchful stenchsome stench trap stench trench stenchy
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on S Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary