| 释义 |
miasmas
mi·as·ma M0267600 (mī-ăz′mə, mē-)n. pl. mi·as·mas or mi·as·ma·ta (-mə-tə) 1. A noxious atmosphere or influence: "The family affection, the family expectations, seemed to permeate the atmosphere ... like a coiling miasma" (Louis Auchincloss).2. a. A foul-smelling vapor arising from rotting organic matter, formerly thought to cause disease.b. A thick vaporous atmosphere or emanation: wreathed in a miasma of cigarette smoke.
[Greek, pollution, stain, from miainein, to pollute.]
mi·as′mal, mi′as·mat′ic (mī′əz-măt′ĭk), mi·as′mic (-mĭk) adj.miasmasEmanations from leftover vestiges or previously acute conditions, such as childhood measles, or by toxins from current conditions, such as influenza or a period of worry or grief.Miasmas
Miasmas according to old ideas (in the “prebacterial” period), noxious emanations, the products of decay, which supposedly cause infectious diseases. Since the 19th century the term “miasmas” has been used only in a figurative sense. ThesaurusSeemiasma |