Does the smell of garbage make you feel nauseous or nauseated?These words seem interchangeable, but they actually have different usages and meanings. Find out which one describes that sick feeling in your stomach.

These words sound similar, but they describe two different situations. The wordnauseousrefers to something that causes nausea, whilenauseateddescribes that weird feeling when you might throw up.

Theadjectivenauseousrefers to "something that causes nausea." That means that the thing you're grossed out by is actually the nauseous item. Explore examples of how to usenauseain a sentence:

• That burned cheese smell is reallynauseous.
• I don't like hearingnauseous jokes about bathroom humor.
• The sight of blood is verynauseous to me.
• Our damp basement has anauseous smell.
• The taste of broccoli is extremelynauseous to Clint.

If you want to describe that swirly, sick feeling in the pit of your stomach, the word you're looking for isnauseated.It's theparticiple version of the verb "to nauseate." Examples of correctly usingnauseatedin a sentence include:

• Tina feltnauseated at the beginning of her pregnancy.
• Even the slightest smell of onions makes my momnauseated.
• The kids were allnauseated after riding in the car for so long.
• Do you feelnauseated when you see something disgusting?
• I've been feelingnauseated after eating those old muffins.

In modern usage,nauseousis the more common way to describe a gross or disgusted feeling. However, to grammar sticklers, usingnauseousvs.nauseatedinterchangeably may result in confusion. For example:

• The boy wasnauseous after riding on the roller coaster. (Was he feeling sick, or was he so stinky that he caused others to be sick?)

• Eating lots of garlic always makes menauseous. (Does it make you feel like you're going to throw up, or does it make others feel that way when they smell you?)

• Our dog wasnauseous after being sprayed with a skunk. (Did he smell gross, or did he feel grossed out himself?)

Bothnauseousandnauseatedcome from the wordnausea, which means "stomach sickness or discomfort." But can you see the connection between the wordnausea andnautical?

Nautical refers to sailors or ships on the ocean. ItsGreek root,naûs, means "ship," and the Greek wordnausíā means "seasickness." The word becamenausea in Latin, and when added to theLatin suffix-ous, it becomesnauseous— "full of seasickness or stomach discomfort."Nauseateis the verb form of the wordnausea — "to become sick."

Now that you know the difference betweennauseatedandnauseous,any grammar discomfort should clear up quickly! If you'd like to clarify more word pairs, take a look at the difference betweendesert vs. dessert.Or impress even the biggest grammar sticklers with your knowledge ofenquire vs.inquire.