PUTREFACTION Synonyms: 18 Similar and Opposite Words

putrefaction

noun

ˌpyü-trə-ˈfak-shən

Definition of putrefaction

as in decomposition

the process by which dead organic matter separates into simpler substances clearing the refrigerator of what the previous tenant had left behind was like taking a course in the advanced putrefaction of leftovers

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Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of putrefaction Likely only dead individuals, floating as gases formed by putrefaction accumulated in body cavities, entered the lagoon. — David Bressan, Forbes.com, 29 July 2025 When the surgeons finally opened her with a piece of broken glass, the putrefaction was as warm as life. — Nell Zink, Harper's Magazine, 28 Feb. 2025 Here was an artist drawn irresistibly to executions and corpses, dismemberment and putrefaction. — airmail.news, 20 Apr. 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 See All Example Sentences for putrefaction

Recent Examples of Synonyms for putrefaction

Noun

Authorities announced on Thursday that two unidentified bodies, both in a state of decomposition, have been found buried in the yard.

— Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 6 Aug. 2026
The bodies were found buried in the backyard and were in a state of decomposition, police said.

— Phil Helsel, NBC news, 6 Aug. 2026

Definition of decomposition

Noun

The system detects gamma rays released when atomic nuclei collide and decay, giving researchers a direct look at the forces holding atomic cores together.

— Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 1 Aug. 2026
In many cities, the autonomy of drug users has taken precedence over nearly everything and everyone else, not least working-class families like Monsegur’s who must live alongside addicts and accept dystopian decay.

— Michael Powell, The Atlantic, 30 July 2026