off odor
Something smells wrong
An off odor is an unpleasant or abnormal smell indicating something has gone wrong—spoilage, contamination, or chemical change.
The term appears most often in food safety contexts: Discard any meat with an off odor.
The phrasing suggests deviation from what's expected rather than simple bad smell.
- staleNo longer fresh
- rancidDecomposed fat's quality
- spoiledRuined or overindulged
- gone badSpoiled, unfit to consume
- mustyStale from dampness
past its prime · sour · sour milk · foul · putrid · funky · rank · locker room · gym socks · moldy · stench · whiff · rotten · rotten eggs · fermented · sulfur · ammonia · decay