Link Centre Dictionary

miasma

UK/mɪˈæzmə/ US/ˌmiːəzˈmætɪk/ uncommon

noun

1.

an unwholesome atmosphere

  • “the novel spun a miasma of death and decay”
2.

unhealthy vapors rising from the ground or other sources

  • “the miasma of the marshes”
  • “a miasma of cigar smoke”

Origin

First attested in 1665. From Ancient Greek μίασμα (míasma, “stain; pollution”).

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.