mephitis
mep·hi·tis
noun
2.
a distinctive odor that is offensively unpleasant
3.
in some classifications: type genus of the subfamily Mephitinae
Origin
From Latin mefītis, mephītis, from the name of a Samnite goddess who personified the poisonous gases emitted from swamps and volcanoes.
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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.