Fragrance Glossary
Definitions of fragrance terminology used across Fragrance Fragrance: sillage, projection, concentration types, and the language that shows up in note pyramids and reviews.
Concentrations & Types
What's actually in the bottle, from cologne to pure parfum.
- AttarAttar is an alcohol-free perfume oil — strictly a hydro-distilled essence cap…
- Eau de CologneEau de cologne (EDC) means two things: a light fragrance concentration of abo…
- Eau de ParfumEau de parfum (EDP) is a fragrance concentration of about 15-20% aromatic com…
- Eau de ToiletteEau de toilette (EDT) is a fragrance concentration of about 5-15% aromatic co…
- Eau FraicheEau fraiche is the lightest fragrance concentration — about 1-3% aromatic com…
- Extrait de ParfumExtrait de parfum — also called parfum or pure perfume — is the most concentr…
- Perfume OilA perfume oil is fragrance concentrate carried in oil instead of alcohol — da…
Notes & Structure
How a fragrance is built and how its notes unfold.
- Accord
- Base NotesBase notes are the bottom tier of the fragrance pyramid — heavy, slow-evapora…
- Dry-DownDry-down is a fragrance's final phase: what's left on skin once the top and h…
- Fragrance WheelThe fragrance wheel is Michael Edwards' circular map of scent families — Flor…
- Heart NotesHeart notes (middle notes) are a perfume's core — what you smell once the top…
- LinearA linear fragrance smells broadly the same from first spray to drydown, not m…
- Perfume NotesPerfume notes are the named scents in a fragrance, grouped into top, heart, a…
- Top NotesTop notes (head notes) are a perfume's opening — the bright, citrusy scents y…
Scent Descriptors
The words reviewers reach for to pin down a smell.
- AnimalicAnimalic is the perfume descriptor for notes that smell of skin, fur, and war…
- BalsamicIn perfume, balsamic is a sweet, warm, resinous descriptor — benzoin, balsams…
- CreamyCreamy is a texture, not a note — a soft, rounded, milky feel built from sand…
- EarthyEarthy is the perfumery facet of damp soil, roots, and forest floor — built f…
- FacetA facet is one recognizable side of a note — patchouli's chocolatey facet, ro…
- IndolicIndolic describes the white-floral, animalic character of indole — radiant an…
- LactonicLactonic describes the milky, creamy, peachy, and coconut smell of lactones i…
- LeatheryLeathery is the perfume descriptor for the smell of tanned hide — from smoky …
- OzonicOzonic is the perfume descriptor for airy, clean-air freshness — sea breeze, …
- PowderyPowdery is a texture, not a note — a soft, dry, cosmetic feel built from iris…
- ResinousIn perfume, resinous describes the smell of tree resins — frankincense, myrrh…
- SmokySmoky is the perfume descriptor for a burnt, tarry smell — built from birch t…
Performance & Wear
How a scent behaves on skin and across the day.
- Beast ModeBeast mode is fragrance slang for a scent that performs enormously — huge pro…
- BloomIn perfume, bloom is when a scent opens up and projects more on warm skin — p…
- LongevityLongevity is how long a fragrance stays detectable on your skin, measured in …
- MacerationMaceration is the rest a freshly blended perfume gets before it ships. How it…
- Office-safeOffice-safe means a fragrance that stays in your own space — modest projectio…
- Projection
- Signature ScentA signature scent is the fragrance you wear often enough that people associat…
- SillageSillage is the scent trail a fragrance leaves behind. Learn what sillage mean…
- Skin scentA skin scent is a fragrance that wears close to the body with low projection …
Families & Styles
The classic scent families and the styles they name.
- ChypreChypre is a fragrance structure: bright bergamot over a mossy base of oakmoss…
- FougèreFougère is a fragrance family built on lavender, oakmoss, and coumarin. It me…
- Fragrance familiesFragrance families sort scents by dominant character — floral, woody, amber, …
- SolifloreA soliflore is built to smell like one flower — and almost never made from a …
Buying & Authenticity
Decoding labels, batch codes, and the dupe question.
- Batch CodeA fragrance batch code is a date stamp, not proof of authenticity. How to fin…
- Blind BuyA blind buy is buying a full bottle without smelling it first. What a "safe" …
- CloneWhat a fragrance "clone" means: a cheap scent built to closely match one spec…
- DecantIn fragrance, a decant is perfume transferred from its original bottle into a…
- DiscontinuedWhat "discontinued" means for a fragrance: why brands pull a scent, how it di…
- Discovery setA discovery set is a brand-curated bundle of small vials for testing scents b…
- DupeA fragrance dupe is a cheaper original built to smell like a pricier scent. I…
- FlankerIn perfumery a flanker is a spin-off of a successful original — same brand, a…
- Fragrance wardrobeA fragrance wardrobe is a curated set of perfumes for different seasons, occa…
- Limited EditionIn fragrance, "limited edition" is a claim about availability, not the juice …
- ReformulationWhat "reformulated" means for a fragrance: how it differs from discontinued, …
- SampleA perfume sample is a small vial — usually 1–2 ml — for trying a scent before…
- SplitIn fragrance, a split is a group buy: several people share the cost of one fu…
- TesterWhat a tester bottle is: plain packaging, often no cap, same juice as retail,…
- VintageWhat vintage means for a fragrance: an older, pre-reformulation formula, why …
Ingredients & Making
The molecules and methods behind the juice.
- AbsoluteAn absolute is the most concentrated aromatic plant extract: a concrete that …
- AldehydesAldehydes are the soapy-waxy sparkle behind Chanel No. 5 and the aldehydic fl…
- AmbroxanAmbroxan is the synthetic recreation of aged ambergris — dry, woody, salty, s…
- CaloneCalone is the synthetic marine molecule that gave perfume its watery, waterme…
- CashmeranCashmeran is a single synthetic molecule (DPMI) that IFF sells as 'cashmere w…
- CO2 extractionIn perfumery, CO2 extraction uses pressurised carbon dioxide as a cold solven…
- ConcreteIn perfumery a concrete is the waxy, semi-solid mass left after solvent-extra…
- CoumarinCoumarin is the sweet, hay-like aroma chemical behind tonka bean and the foug…
- DistillationIn perfumery, distillation uses steam to pull aromatic oil from petals, wood,…
- EnfleurageEnfleurage is the old Grasse method of pressing flower scent into odorless fa…
- Essential OilEssential oil: physically extracted volatile oil from one botanical. Solvent …
- ExpressionExpression is the no-heat extraction method that cold-presses oil from citrus…
- FixativeIn perfumery a fixative slows the evaporation of a fragrance's volatile notes…
- GalaxolideGalaxolide (HHCB) is the synthetic musk behind the clean, fresh-laundry base …
- HeadspaceHeadspace analysis traps the molecules a living flower emits, reads them by G…
- HedioneHedione is a synthetic jasmine molecule that adds airy radiance to perfume ra…
- HydrosolA hydrosol, or floral water, is the aromatic water collected alongside essent…
- IFRAIFRA, the International Fragrance Association, is the industry's self-regulat…
- IononeIonone is the aroma chemical that gave perfumery its violet note in 1893 — an…
- Iso E SuperIso E Super is a synthetic woody-amber molecule in roughly 40% of fragrances.…
- ModifierA modifier is a material added in small amounts to adjust, round, or shift an…
- OverdoseIn perfumery, an overdose means dosing a single aroma material at an unusuall…
- PerfumerA perfumer is the person who composes a fragrance — the 'nose' or nez. What t…
- Solvent extractionIn perfumery, solvent extraction dissolves a flower's scent in hexane instead…
- TinctureA tincture is an aromatic material made by steeping a raw ingredient in high-…
The Nose & Brain
How the nose and brain actually register scent.
- AnosmiaAnosmia is the loss of smell. How it differs from hyposmia, parosmia, and pha…
- Olfactory FatigueOlfactory fatigue is the normal, temporary reason you stop smelling your own …
- ParosmiaParosmia is when a real smell turns distorted and foul — the post-COVID sympt…
- PhantosmiaPhantosmia is smelling an odor that isn't there — often burnt or chemical. Ho…
- Scent MemoryScent memory: how a smell pulls back a whole moment, emotion intact. The neur…