How to Use putrefaction in a Sentence
putrefaction
noun-
Bodies are still being pulled from the ruins and the smell of putrefaction hangs in the air.
—The Economist, 12 Oct. 2017
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The indicators change color to red or brilliant purple with the presence of the byproducts of putrefaction.
—Emily Matchar, Smithsonian, 3 July 2019
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These deposits are believed to be formed by the decay and putrefaction of living organisms.
—Jay Bennett, Popular Mechanics, 1 Mar. 2017
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His job had been to excavate the bomb shelters and basements to remove the rotting corpses before the entire city started to stink of human putrefaction.
—Rachel Lance, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Mar. 2020
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During the saponification process, the body’s fatty acids turn into a waxy, soap-like compound that covers the corpse and prevents putrefaction.
—Oscar Urbiola, National Geographic, 29 Oct. 2019
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The globe is smooth, the hand strokes its polished, multicolored surface, under the blue of distant waters and islands there is bleeding and putrefaction.
—Claudio Magris, Harper's Magazine, 25 May 2021
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For miles at a stretch, the only landmarks were corpses: foxes, raccoons, armadillos in various states of putrefaction on the margins of the Interstate.
—Mark O’Connell, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2017
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Receptors are tuned to detect a few basic odors apiece: some detect geranium petals or pine needles, while others detect the by-products of putrefaction.
—Ryan P. Dalton, Scientific American, 13 Aug. 2019
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Decomposition brings with it gases and odors and scavengers, which can be disturbing and unpleasant for the living, but putrefaction itself is not a source of disease.
—Lisa Wells, Harper's Magazine, 28 Sep. 2021
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The putrefaction of the rotting leviathans was so violent that several curious onlookers dropped dead after taking a whiff.
—Nathaniel Rich, Harper's magazine, 10 May 2019
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Such a consistent putrefaction pattern also comes as a surprise to others on the trail of early animal evolution.
—Katherine Harmon, Scientific American, 31 Jan. 2010
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In one somber composition, a pair of pumpkins, long past putrefaction, approach fossilization.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 9 Sep. 2022
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The putrefaction of the university, and of elite American and European culture more generally, has made the task of rebuilding liberal institutions an urgent one.
—Bruce Gilley, WSJ, 7 Oct. 2020
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On Mars, only the anaerobic bacteria that don’t require oxygen could proliferate until freezing, which means putrefaction would be severely limited.
—Alison Klesman, Discover Magazine, 29 Sep. 2021
Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'putrefaction.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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