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56 results for: Perfume
Dictionary Entries (10 more entries. View all »)
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) | Cite This Source |
per·fume 
Audio Help [n. pur-fyoom, per-fyoom; v. per-fyoom, pur-fyoom] Pronunciation Key noun, verb, -fumed, -fum·ing.
—Related forms
Audio Help [n. pur-fyoom, per-fyoom; v. per-fyoom, pur-fyoom] Pronunciation Key noun, verb, -fumed, -fum·ing. –noun
–verb (used with object)
| 1. | a substance, extract, or preparation for diffusing or imparting an agreeable or attractive smell, esp. a fluid containing fragrant natural oils extracted from flowers, woods, etc., or similar synthetic oils. |
| 2. | the scent, odor, or volatile particles emitted by substances that smell agreeable. |
| 3. | (of substances, flowers, etc.) to impart a pleasant fragrance to. |
| 4. | to impregnate with a sweet odor; scent. |
[Origin: 1525–35; earlier parfume (n.) < MF parfum, n. deriv. of parfumer (v.) < obs. It parfumare (mod. profumare). See per-, fume]
] —Related forms
per·fume·less, adjective
per·fum·y, adjective
—Synonyms 1. essence, attar, scent; incense. 2. Perfume, aroma, fragrance all refer to agreeable odors. Perfume often indicates a strong, rich smell, natural or manufactured: the perfume of flowers. Fragrance is usually applied to fresh, delicate, and delicious odors, esp. from growing things: fragrance of new-mown hay. Aroma is restricted to a somewhat spicy smell: the aroma of coffee.
—Antonyms 2. stench.
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Thesaurus Entries
| Synonym Collection v1.1 | Cite This Source | |
| Main Entry: | perfume | |
| Part of Speech: | noun | |
| Synonyms: | aroma, aura, balm, bouquet, emanation, essence, flavor, fragrance, incense, odor, potpourri, redolence, sachet, scent, smell, spice, sweeten, attar, cense, civet, cologne, frankincense, musk, myrrh, pastil, patchouli, pulvillio | |
| Source: | Synonym Collection v1.1 Copyright © 2008 by Lexico Publishing Group, LLC. | |
| Roget's II: The New Thesaurus | Cite This Source | |
| Main Entry: | fragrance | |
| Part of Speech: | noun | |
| Definition: | A sweet or pleasant odor. | |
| Synonyms: | aroma, bouquet, redolence, scent | |
| Source: | Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved. | |
| Roget's II: The New Thesaurus | Cite This Source | |
| Main Entry: | scent | |
| Part of Speech: | verb | |
| Definition: | To fill with a pleasant odor. | |
| Synonyms: | aromatize | |
| Source: | Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved. | |
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Encyclopedia Articles (41 more entries. View all »)
| Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia | Cite This Source |
perfume, aroma produced by the essential oils of plants and by synthetic aromatics. The burning of incense that accompanied the religious rites of ancient China, Palestine, and Egypt led gradually to the personal use of perfume. In Greece, where flower scents were first developed, the use of perfume became widespread. In Rome perfume was used extravagantly. During the Middle Ages the Crusaders brought the knowledge of perfumery back to Europe from the East. It was at this time that animal substances were first added as fixatives—musk, ambergris, civet, and castoreum (from the beaver). Italian perfumers settled in Paris (after 1500), and thereafter France became the leader of the industry. After 1500 scents became fashionable; both men and women wore an ornamental pomander or pouncet-box (dry-scent box), which hung from the waist. Each wealthy household had a "still room" where perfume was prepared by the women. Since the early 19th cent., chemists have analyzed many essential oils and have produced thousands of synthetics, some imitating natural products and others yielding new scents. Most perfumes today are blends of natural and synthetic scents and of fixatives that equalize vaporization of the blends and add pungency. The ingredients are usually combined with alcohol for liquid scents and with fatty bases for many cosmetics. Leading producers of perfume oils are the East Indies, Réunion island, and S France. Bulgaria and Turkey are noted for attar of roses, Algeria for geranium oils, Italy for citrus oils, and England for lavender and mint. The great fashion houses of Paris are renowned for perfumes that carry their names. See eau de Cologne.
See E. Sagarin, The Science and Art of Perfumery (2d ed. 1955); R. Genders, Perfume through the Ages (1972).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004, Columbia University Press.
Licensed from Columbia University Press
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