putrefaction
noun
pu·tre·fac·tion
ˌpyü-trə-ˈfak-shən 
1
: the decomposition of organic matter
especially
: the typically anaerobic splitting of proteins by bacteria and fungi with the formation of foul-smelling incompletely oxidized products
2
: the state of being putrefied : corruption
Synonyms
Examples of putrefaction in a Sentence
clearing the refrigerator of what the previous tenant had left behind was like taking a course in the advanced putrefaction of leftovers
Recent Examples on the Web
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
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
Once the body is out of sight underground, embalmed tissues eventually melt into a toxic putrefaction.
—Joan Meiners, Discover Magazine, 6 Aug. 2020
See all Example Sentences for putrefaction 
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Elsa Richardson, TIME, 3 Oct. 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
Once the body is out of sight underground, embalmed tissues eventually melt into a toxic putrefaction.
—Joan Meiners, Discover Magazine, 6 Aug. 2020
See all Example Sentences for putrefaction
Dictionary Entries Near putrefaction
Cite this Entry
“Putrefaction.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/putrefaction. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
putrefaction
noun
pu·tre·fac·tion
ˌpyü-trə-ˈfak-shən
1
: the rotting of organic matter
2
: the state of being putrefied : corruption
Medical Definition
putrefaction
noun
pu·tre·fac·tion
ˌpyü-trə-ˈfak-shən
1
: the decomposition of organic matter
especially
: the typically anaerobic splitting of proteins by bacteria and fungi with the formation of foul-smelling incompletely oxidized products
2
: the state of being putrefied
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