putrefaction
Plural: putrefactions
Noun
- a state of decay usually accompanied by an offensive odor
- (biology) the process of decay caused by bacterial or fungal action
- moral perversion; impairment of virtue and moral principles
- "Rome had fallen into moral putrefaction"
- The act of causing to rot; the anaerobic splitting of proteins by bacteria and fungi with the formation of malodorous, incompletely oxidized products.
- Rotten material.
- The state of being rotten.
Origin / Etymology
First attested between 1350 and 1400 from Middle English putrefaccioun, from Old French putrefaccïon, from Latin putrefactiō, from putrefactus, perfect passive participle of putrefaciō (“become rotten”)
Synonyms
corruption, decomposition, degeneracy, depravation, depravity, rot, rotting
Scrabble Score: 19
putrefaction: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Wordputrefaction: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
putrefaction: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary