smelly

adjective

ˈsme-lē How to pronounce smelly (audio)
Definition of smellynext
as in stinking
having an unpleasant smell your smelly sneakers are enough to raise the dead

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of smelly There’s nothing worse than getting out into the wilderness, away from society, and then hearing somebody one campsite over start up a loud, smelly gas generator. — Boone Ashworth, WIRED, 6 Jan. 2025 Mushy and smelly roots should be clipped away with sterilized pruners or scissors, while circling roots can be gently teased apart to improve water absorption. — Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Dec. 2024 Some states have taken measures to fight back against the smelly, harmful tree. — Diana Leyva, The Tennessean, 18 Mar. 2024 Some smelly cards will be mingled in with festive holiday mail this December, compliments of Citizens Energy. — Jen Guadarrama, The Indianapolis Star, 10 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for smelly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smelly
  1. stinking
  2. ripe
  3. malodorous
  4. foul
  5. disgusting
  6. filthy
  7. fetid
  8. musty
Adjective
  • This is about a team with a top-10 payroll whose GM committed too stinking much of it to dogs that can’t, or won’t, pull the sled.
    — Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 22 Dec. 2019
  • Muttaiah said the man inside the stinking manhole was working without any safety equipment — no gloves, no shoes, no supplemental oxygen.
    — Joanna Slater, Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2019
Definition of stinking
Adjective
  • The table above suggests that the conditions are ripe for another price crash, albeit perhaps a fender-bender.
    — Michael Lynch, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
  • Once ripe, they can be consumed in various dishes, like salads and guacamole, or on their own.
    — Elizabeth Barnes, Verywell Health, 8 Apr. 2025
Definition of ripe
Adjective
  • Public stations were expensive to maintain and quickly became dirty and malodorous.
    — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 22 Jan. 2025
  • Come for Gary Oldman’s Jackson Lamb, sweaty and malodorous and razor-sharp; stay for some of the best-structured storytelling on television.
    — Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 12 Dec. 2024
Definition of malodorous
Adjective
  • The Seminoles clobbered Nick Robert’s pitches early in the game; center fielder Max Williams laced a line-drive homer just inside the right-field foul pole to put FSU up 2-0 in the first inning.
    — Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 21 Mar. 2025
  • The play occurred in the sixth inning when the ball was hit into foul territory.
    — Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
Definition of foul
Adjective
  • Do not tell the patient disgusting hospital stories about your own operations or procedures.
    — Marla Jo Fisher, Oc Register, 2 Apr. 2025
  • Using that platform to engage in partisan attacks and accuse former Department leadership of weaponizing law enforcement is a disgusting betrayal of those values.
    — Mark Davis, Newsweek, 14 Mar. 2025
Definition of disgusting
Adjective
  • Chicagoans will have no one to hold accountable at the ballot box when the buses don’t arrive and rail stations are filthy and crime-ridden.
    — Forrest Claypool, Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2025
  • The plastic waste China received was filthy, much of it too dirty to be cleaned, shredded, and turned into new plastic.
    — Scott W. Stern, The Atlantic, 10 Mar. 2025
Definition of filthy
Adjective
  • Only one of them has a fetish for the fetid stink of porta potties, but the other one has their weird kinks too.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 28 Jan. 2025
  • During the previous effort, squalid and fetid camps grew on the border and were marred by gang violence.
    — Colleen Long, Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2025
Definition of fetid
Adjective
  • Eliminate musty closet smells by placing containers filled with kitty litter in a corner of the closet.
    — Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 8 Apr. 2025
  • Some of his customers swear by it for getting rid of stubborn pit stains and freshening up musty towels, too.
    — Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 25 Mar. 2025
Definition of musty

Browse Nearby Words

smells (of)
smelly
smidgen
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Cite this Entry

“Smelly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smelly. Accessed 17 Apr. 2025.

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