Miasma (noun) (literary)
Me-azma
An unpleasant or unhealthy odour or vapour, or more metaphorically an oppressive atmosphere surrounding something.
Example sentences
“As she stumbled out of the pantry the miasma of sweet sherry hung around her body like a cloak of despair.”
“Someone has to say something, he’s come back to the office straight from the gym, hung in a miasma like a hobo.”
Miasma is from the Greek miainein, to pollute, to defile the air. It’s very descriptive and a worthy contender of our word of the day.