/ ˈpɜːfjuːm; NAmE pərˈfjuːm/ noun , verb
■ noun [ C , U ]
1.
a liquid, often made from flowers, that you put on your skin to make yourself smell nice :
a bottle of expensive perfume
We stock a wide range of perfumes.
the perfume counter of the store
2.
a pleasant, often sweet, smell
SYN scent :
the heady perfume of the roses
■ verb [ vn ] [ often passive ] perfume sth (with sth)
1.
( literary ) ( especially of flowers ) to make the air in a place smell pleasant
SYN scent :
The garden was perfumed with the smell of roses.
2.
to put perfume in or on sth :
She perfumed her bath with fragrant oils.
► per·fumed adjective :
perfumed soap
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WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent. (originally denoting pleasant-smelling smoke from a burning substance, especially one used in fumigation): from French parfum (noun), parfumer (verb), from obsolete Italian parfumare , literally to smoke through.