Noyous

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Archaic term describing something harmful, noxious or unpleasantly offensive, especially a foul odor that makes people recoil
2. Old-fashioned word for something injurious to health or extremely disagreeable, particularly a stench or noxious vapor
3. Obsolete adjective meaning damaging or repellent, typically applied to a smell or substance that is sickening to breathe

Etymology: "Noyous" is an older spelling of "noisome," an adjective meaning harmful to health, and its history runs through the verb "noy." That verb, from Middle English, meant to annoy, vex, or harm, and it was a shortened form of "annoy," which came from Old French "anoier." The ending "-ous" was added to turn the verb into an adjective describing something that causes such trouble, so a noyous thing was one that vexed or injured. Over time the sense narrowed. The modern "noisome" keeps the idea of harm but is now usually applied to foul smells and unpleasant conditions, as in a noisome swamp. The spelling also shifted, and the "-some" ending in "noisome" is a later alteration that made the word look like "noise" and "-some," a change that has nothing to do with sound.