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Synonym Chooser

How is the word musty distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of musty are fetid, fusty, malodorous, noisome, putrid, rank, and stinking. While all these words mean "bad-smelling," fusty and musty suggest lack of fresh air and sunlight, fusty also implying prolonged uncleanliness, musty stressing the effects of dampness, mildew, or age.

a fusty attic
the musty odor of a damp cellar

When is it sensible to use malodorous instead of musty?

The synonyms malodorous and musty are sometimes interchangeable, but malodorous may range from the unpleasant to the strongly offensive.

malodorous fertilizers

When would noisome be a good substitute for musty?

While in some cases nearly identical to musty, noisome adds a suggestion of being harmful or unwholesome as well as offensive.

a stagnant, noisome sewer

In what contexts can putrid take the place of musty?

The words putrid and musty are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, putrid implies particularly the sickening odor of decaying organic matter.

the putrid smell of rotting fish

When can rank be used instead of musty?

Although the words rank and musty have much in common, rank suggests a strong unpleasant smell.

rank cigar smoke

How do stinking and fetid relate to one another, in the sense of musty?

Both stinking and fetid suggest the foul or disgusting.

prisoners were held in stinking cells
the fetid odor of skunk cabbage

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 musty According to a new study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, musty crypts and the decayed remains of mummies smell-like a high end spa. Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 14 Feb. 2025 These initiatives elicited predictable backlash from musty corners of the Internet, where it was said that D.E.I. radicals were promoting mediocrities and trashing the canon. Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2025 Other celebrities like Oprah, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Brooke Shields have also been reviving the sporty pants that have previously been reserved for workout classes and musty locker rooms. Alyssa Grabinski, People.com, 16 Feb. 2025 Curry can develop a musty tang, while celery seasonings may become more potent. Caroline Tien, SELF, 25 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for musty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for 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
Adjective
  • The steel frame is easy to wipe down, and the open design keeps it from trapping fusty odors.
    Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 4 Mar. 2025
  • Paradoxically, the most lucrative magazine today is likely the Costco Connection, which emerges monthly from the fusty and secretive Kirkland, WA, marketing empire.
    Peter Bart, Deadline, 20 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • At the time, Latinos were often cast in stereotyped roles with heavy accents and largely denied the opportunity to direct features.
    Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 17 Mar. 2025
  • Tragedies can be examined by those outside of its sphere of destruction, but the groundswell of feeling from Mexican viewers and critics is that there was little or no care taken to understand the cultural grief beyond stereotyped spectacle.
    Lucy Ford, TIME, 24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
  • Once ripe, they can be consumed in various dishes, like salads and guacamole, or on their own.
    Elizabeth Barnes, Verywell Health, 8 Apr. 2025
  • 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
Adjective
  • Robbins was mostly Black, a place built by Black people who were tired of racial conflict in Chicago.
    D. Watkins, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2025
  • Was Michelle ever tired of using the vibrator all the time in the show?
    Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Direct trade models that are commonplace in the coffee industry are not so in the tea industry (albeit not unheard of), because of the way the majority of the latter operates through world market auctions and regional export/importers.
    Christopher Marquis, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
  • But for others, particularly younger Americans, this could be the season of life where receiving wedding invitations is commonplace, and the costs are adding up.
    Nerdwallet, Oc Register, 4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The movie’s a little more hackneyed and obvious now, but its central idea is still an undeniably creepy one: possessed children with pitchforks.
    Tim Grierson, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
  • Which is a nauseatingly hackneyed and clichéd — not to mention stupefyingly reductive — type of statement to make about any kind of art or entertainment, of course.
    Andrew Unterberger, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019
Adjective
  • Usually, a smelly refrigerator is caused by specific foods inside it and how they're stored.
    Halee Miller Van Ryswyk, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Apr. 2025
  • Before, the engine room was a noisy, smelly space below deck.
    Chun-Lien Su, IEEE Spectrum, 29 July 2019

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Cite this Entry

“Musty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/musty. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.

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