fust

Here's a word whose inclusion here is inspired by my recent move into a basement room, and the ensuing odor that has permeated much of my clothing. "Fust" is both a noun indicating a very pungent musty smell, and a verb indicating the process of becoming endowed with such a smell. The word is arcane enough that it itself seems a bit musty, and perhaps it's me, but it also just seems dirty in some way. This may be because few words begin with the "fu" sound, and one immediately expects, upon hearing them, the "ck" that so often follows. "Fust" stops short of this, instead rounding out with a less abrupt "st" that stops short of the filthy and leaves the hearer a bit taken aback by this strange, stagnant word that seems a throwback to a prison cell in the 19th century, or something similar.