Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Keep "fuliginous" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "fuliginous" intact in the sentence you are editing.
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
After choosing a replacement for "fuliginous", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "fuliginous" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
7 total sentences available.
1729, John Woodward, An Attempt Towards a Natural History of The Fossils of England …the fuliginous Matter form'd, by the Drift of the Air, into the Shape of a Species of marine Lichen, in Creeks of Chimneys, Stoves, Forges and Furnaces, where there are Fires kept for a considerable Time, and much Fuel spent.
Source: wiktionary
1729, John Woodward, An Attempt Towards a Natural History of The Fossils of England ...the Tali, and Septa, are of a more dusky, or, as Wormius expresses it, of a more fuliginous Colour, than ours in England commonly are...
Source: wiktionary
1729, John Woodward, An Attempt Towards a Natural History of The Fossils of England I took them at first for natural Fruits of that Shrub, till the Coffee-Man assur'd me that, when they were first put up, there were none of them upon it, and that they were all form'd since... It has a fuliginous Taste, with a considerable Pungency. This Coffee-Room is much frequented: and there are generally several Pots and Boylers before the Fire. Out of the Dust that arises, the Steams of the Coffee, and other Liquors, Smoak of Tobacco, and the Halitus from the Breath of the People, those Bodies are form'd. This sets forth something of the Constitution of the Air of a Coffee-House.
Source: wiktionary
To that dingy fuliginous Operative, emerging from his soot-mill, what is the first duty I will prescribe, and offer help towards? That he clean the skin of him.
Source: wiktionary
Showing 4 of 7 available sentences.
Closest matches include besmirched, blotchy, dark, dingy, dirty.
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.