odor

UK: /ˈəʊdəʳ/ US: /ˈoʊdɚ/ ,(ō′dər)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

o•dor /ˈoʊdɚ/   n. 

1. the property of a substance that acts on the sense of smell;
   scent: [countable]
   : an unpleasant odor.
   [uncountable] full of odor.

Also,[esp. Brit.,] odour. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

o•dor  (ō′dər), n. 

1. the property of a substance that activates the sense of smell:
   to have an unpleasant odor.
2. Physiology a sensation perceived by the sense of smell;
   scent.
3. an agreeable scent;
   fragrance.
4. a disagreeable smell.
5. a quality or property characteristic or suggestive of something:
   An odor of suspicion surrounded his testimony.
6. repute:
   in bad odor with the whole community.
7. [Archaic.] something that has a pleasant scent.

Also,[esp. Brit.,] odour. 

• Latin
• Old French
• Middle English 1250–1300

o′dor•ful, adj. 
o′dor•less, adj. 
Synonyms

• 3. . aroma, redolence, perfume.
  Odor, smell, scent, stench all refer to sensations perceived through the nose by the olfactory nerves.
  Odor and smell in literal contexts are often interchangeable. Figuratively,
  odor also usually occurs in positive contexts:
  the odor of sanctity.
  Smell is the most general and neutral of these two terms, deriving connotation generally from the context in which it is used:
  the tempting smell of fresh-baked bread; the rank smell of rotting vegetation.
  In figurative contexts smell may be either positive or negative:
  the sweet smell of success; a strong smell of duplicity pervading the affair.
  Scent refers either to delicate and pleasing aromas or to faint, barely perceptible smells:
  the scent of lilacs on the soft spring breeze; deer alarmed by the scent of man.
  Stench is strongly negative, referring both literally and figuratively to what is foul, sickening, or repulsive:
  the stench of rotting flesh; steeped in the stench of iniquity and treason.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

odor / ˈəʊdə/ noun

1. the US spelling of odour

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

o•dour  (ō′dər), n. [Chiefly Brit.]

1. British Terms odor.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

odour, odor / ˈəʊdə/ noun

1. the property of a substance that gives it a characteristic scent or smell
2. a pervasive quality about something: an odour of dishonesty
3. repute or regard (in the phrases in good odour, in bad odour)

Etymology: 13th Century: from Old French odur, from Latin odor; related to Latin olēre to smell, Greek ōzein

ˈodourless, ˈodorless adjective