Adjacent Words

Putrefy definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PU'TREFY, v.t. [L. putrefacio; putris,putrid, and facio, to make.]
1. To cause to dissolve; to disorganize and reduce to the simple constituent elements, as animal or vegetable bodies; to cause to rot. Heat and moisture soon putrefy dead flesh or vegetables.
2. To corrupt; to make foul; as, to putrefy the air. [Little used.]
3. To make morbid, carious or gangrenous; as, to putrefy an ulcer or wound.
PU'TREFY, v.i. To dissolve and return to the original distinct elements, as animal and vegetable substances deprived of the living principle; to rot.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: become putrid; decay with an offensive smell; "organic matter putrefies"

Merriam Webster's

verb (-fied; -fying) Etymology: Middle English putrefien, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French putrefier, from Latin putrefacere, from putr?re to be rotten + facere to make — more at do Date: 14th century transitive verb to make putrid intransitive verb to undergo putrefaction Synonyms: see decay

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. (-ies, -ied) 1 intr. & tr. become or make putrid; go bad. 2 intr. fester, suppurate. 3 intr. become morally corrupt. Derivatives: putrefacient adj. putrefaction n. putrefactive adj. Etymology: ME f. L putrefacere f. puter putris rotten

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Putrefy Pu"tre*fy, v. t. [Written also putrify.] [imp. & p. p. Putrefied; p. pr. & vb. n. Putrefying.] [F. putr['e]fier; L. putrere to be rotten + -ficare (in. comp.) to make; cf. L. putrefacere. See Putrid, and -fy.] 1. To render putrid; to cause to decay offensively; to cause to be decomposed; to cause to rot. 2. To corrupt; to make foul. Private suits do putrefy the public good. --Bacon. They would but stink, and putrefy the air. --Shak. 3. To make morbid, carious, or gangrenous; as, to putrefy an ulcer or wound.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Putrefy Pu"tre*fy, v. i. To become putrid; to decay offensively; to rot. --Isa. 1. 6.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(putrefies, putrefying, putrefied) When something putrefies, it decays and produces a very unpleasant smell. (FORMAL) The meat in all of the open flasks putrefied. ...putrefying corpses. = rot VERB: V, V-ing

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. Corrupt, rot, render putrid. II. v. n. Rot, decay, decompose, become rotten, become putrid.

Moby Thesaurus

break down, break up, canker, corrupt, crumble, crumble into dust, decay, decompose, deteriorate, disintegrate, fall into decay, fall to pieces, fester, gangrene, go bad, go off, go to pieces, mildew, mold, molder, mortify, moulder, necrose, putresce, rankle, rot, sphacelate, spoil, suppurate, taint, turn