miasma

/maɪˈæzmə/

/maɪˈæzmə/

Other forms: miasmata; miasmas

A miasma is a cloud of foul-smelling vapor, like swamp gas. You could have a miasma of sweat that lingers in a locker room long after a soccer team has left, or a miasma of rumor swirling around a politician.

As you've probably figured out, miasma is always negative. You could describe the miasma of a hot summer day, but you'd be thinking of the stench of uncollected garbage and exhaust fumes, not the smell of summer flowers. From the Middle Ages until the late 19th century, when germs were identified as causing disease, people believed that you could get sick from the miasma of everyday life — from the odors arising from poor sanitation and cramped quarters.

Definitions of miasma

1. noun

   an unwholesome atmosphere
   “the novel spun a miasma of death and decay”

   synonyms: miasm

   type of:

   ambiance, ambience, atmosphere

   a particular environment or surrounding influence
2. noun

   unhealthy vapors rising from the ground or other sources
   “the miasma of the marshes”

   “a miasma of cigar smoke”

   synonyms: miasm

   type of:

   air pollution

   pollution of the atmosphere