Fragrance Glossary: Key Terms in Plain English

Fragrance, perfume, and cologne defined

The words fragrance, perfume, and cologne are often used as if they mean the same thing. In everyday shopping they overlap, but they started from different ideas. Fragrance is the broadest of the three: it is the general word for a scent, and it is also the word used on consumer product labels for the mixture that produces a smell. Perfume is commonly used to mean a finished scented product, and cologne has a specific concentration meaning that is explained in the next section.

On a product label in the United States, fragrance is an umbrella term for a mixture of chemicals designed to produce a specific scent. According to the nonprofit ecolabeling organization Green Seal, a single fragrance formula may contain from a few to several hundred individual chemicals, and the mixture is often listed on the label only as fragrance. Because fragrance formulas may be treated as trade secrets, companies are often not required to publicly disclose the specific chemicals used in them.

None of these three words has a single legal or regulator-defined meaning that applies across every product category in the United States. When you see them in stores, treat them as ordinary descriptive terms rather than as regulated grades.

• Fragrance: a general word for a scent, and the label term for the scent mixture in a consumer product.
• Perfume: commonly used to mean a finished scented product, or the art of composing one.
• Cologne: in modern retail usage, a concentration name for a lighter, less concentrated style. It also appears in the traditional name Eau de Cologne.

Sources: Green Seal

Concentration terms

Concentration names describe how much perfume oil is blended into an alcohol base. They are conventions, not enforced standards, and the same name can be formulated differently by different houses. The ranges below show how these terms are commonly presented by brands and retailers, and they are approximate. For a fuller discussion of how these names are used in stores, see the fragrance concentrations guide.

The most important caveat is that a higher concentration does not automatically mean a better or stronger fragrance. The notes and accords in the composition also drive intensity and longevity, and a well-built eau de toilette can project more than a poorly built extrait.

Sources: Luckyscent, MOODEAUX, Phlur, Noble Crown Fragrances

Fragrance family terms

A fragrance family is a broad category that groups scents by their overall character. There is no single universally accepted system. Widely cited systems differ in the number and names of categories, so the same fragrance may be classified in conflicting ways depending on which system a store or brand uses.

One widely cited system, described by the retailer Luckyscent, is the seven-category system of the Société Française des Parfumeurs. Another is Michael Edwards' four-category fragrance wheel. Thompson Ferrier notes that families may overlap, and that a fragrance can sit between two categories.

The family formerly labeled oriental is increasingly referred to as amber in current perfumery usage. Both usages coexist, and Luckyscent still lists Oriental as a family. Many family terms describe character and texture rather than a single note, including woody, earthy, smoky, resinous, balsamic, citrusy, aquatic, green, powdery, creamy, and musky.

• Chypre: a family characterized by mossy, woodsy base notes, generally with citrus and an animalic component. It is inspired by a 1917 François Coty fragrance of that name, and the French word Chypre means Cyprus. Because oakmoss has become heavily regulated in modern perfumery, many classic chypres have been reformulated and the category has been eliminated or redefined in some current classification systems.
• Fougère: a style named for the French word for fern, typically featuring herbal notes such as lavender, along with oakmoss, citrus, and woods.
• Gourmand: a fragrance that primarily evokes food, usually dessert, including notes such as vanilla, chocolate, caramel, or fruit.
• Soliflore: a fragrance built around a single flower, even when the formula contains more than one ingredient.
• Amber (formerly oriental): a family built around warm, resinous, and balsamic materials.
• Powdery: a soft, talc-like quality associated with materials such as iris, heliotrope, or certain musks.

Sources: Luckyscent, MOODEAUX, Stock Fragrance, Phlur, Thompson Ferrier

Note and pyramid terms

In perfumery, a note is a single identifiable scent element within a fragrance, such as rose, sandalwood, or bergamot. An accord is a blend of notes or raw materials composed to read as a single, unified scent. Stock Fragrance compares an accord to a chord in music. An accord can also represent scents that cannot be distilled directly, such as leather, by combining other notes.

The olfactive pyramid is the standard diagram of a fragrance's structure, with top notes at the peak, middle notes in the middle, and base notes at the foundation. It describes evaporation over time rather than importance.

Top notes, also called head notes, are the first materials smelled after application. They are typically light, volatile molecules that evaporate within minutes to about half an hour, though time estimates vary. Middle notes, also called heart notes or core notes, emerge as the top notes fade and are usually the notes that define how a scent is described and categorized. Base notes are the heaviest, slowest-evaporating materials, such as woods, musks, resins, and vanilla. They anchor a fragrance and remain after the other notes have gone.

• Note: a single identifiable scent element, such as bergamot or rose.
• Accord: a blend composed to read as one unified scent.
• Olfactive pyramid: a diagram of top, middle, and base notes that shows evaporation over time.
• Top notes: the first few minutes of wear.
• Middle notes (heart or core notes): the main body of the fragrance.
• Base notes: the long-lasting foundation.

Sources: Luckyscent, MOODEAUX, Stock Fragrance, Phlur

Wear-performance terms

Performance terms describe how a fragrance behaves on skin and in the air. Longevity is how long a fragrance remains perceptible after application. Projection is how far away from the wearer someone else can smell the fragrance. Sillage is a French term for the trail of scent left in the air after the wearer moves away; it is distinct from projection, which is about distance while the wearer is still there.

A skin scent is a fragrance with minimal projection that can only be detected very close to the wearer. Tenacity describes the staying power of a fragrance material or finished fragrance, and is closely related to longevity. Substantivity describes how well a fragrance clings to a substrate such as skin, hair, or fabric through time, rinsing, or drying. A linear fragrance smells essentially the same from application to dry down, without distinct stages.

Dry down, or drydown, is the final stage of a fragrance's wear, when the top and middle notes have faded and only the longest-lasting base materials remain. Anosmia is the inability to detect certain notes or odors; in perfumery it is often used for the temporary nose blindness that occurs after prolonged exposure to a scent. Radiance is a newer term used by some writers to blend projection and sillage, describing how a scent diffuses into its surroundings; it is emerging vocabulary rather than standard terminology.

• Longevity: how long the scent lasts.
• Projection: how far it travels from the wearer.
• Sillage: the trail left behind as the wearer moves.
• Skin scent: a fragrance that stays close.
• Tenacity: staying power of a material or finished fragrance.
• Substantivity: how well a fragrance clings to skin, hair, or fabric.
• Linear: no distinct stages from application to dry down.
• Radiance: an emerging term for how a scent diffuses around the wearer.

Sources: Luckyscent, MOODEAUX, Stock Fragrance, Phlur, Noble Crown Fragrances

Shelf-life and storage terms

A few terms describe how fragrance materials are made, how long they last, and how they are stored. Maturation refers to the time required for a perfume concentrate to age or reach its full potential before being put into a base. Cold throw describes how strongly an unlit candle projects scent at room temperature, and scent throw is an umbrella term for how far a product projects fragrance into a space, covering cold and hot throw in candles and projection generally in home fragrance.

The term fragrance-free is a marketing claim, and according to Green Seal it is not regulated. Products labeled unscented may still contain masking agents that neutralize odors without imparting a noticeable scent. Even natural fragrance ingredients such as essential oils can be skin sensitizers that cause allergic reactions.

Storage conditions can affect how long a fragrance retains its intended character, so many wearers keep bottles away from direct sunlight and heat. The glossary uses the term shelf life to mean the period during which a fragrance remains pleasant and recognisable under normal storage. Because formulas differ, there is no single number that applies to every bottle; the terms below describe the processes that influence that period.

• Maturation: aging time before a concentrate is bottled.
• Shelf life: the period during which a fragrance remains pleasant and recognisable under normal storage.
• Cold throw: scent from an unlit candle.
• Scent throw: how far a product projects into a space.
• Fragrance-free: a marketing claim, not a regulated standard.
• Unscented: may still contain masking agents.

Sources: Stock Fragrance, Phlur, Green Seal

Shopping and testing terms

A flanker is a fragrance release related to an existing fragrance, usually similar to the original but with one or two key alterations. A pillar fragrance is a brand's core or flagship scent, distinguished from flankers and limited editions. A coffret is a collection or box set that usually contains either smaller sample sizes of several fragrances in a line or a fragrance with accompanying bath products.

The nose or perfumer is the person who composes the formula of a fragrance, combining the precise ingredients. A factice is a replica fragrance bottle made for store or advertising display that does not contain the fragrance itself.

When testing, keep in mind that skin chemistry and concentration both affect how a fragrance wears. Try a scent on skin rather than paper when you can, and give it time to reach the dry down before deciding. Many shops will provide a sample or a small decant so you can test a fragrance over a full day rather than in the first few minutes.

• Flanker: a related release with small changes.
• Pillar: a brand's flagship scent.
• Coffret: a set of samples or a fragrance with bath products.
• Nose or perfumer: the person who composes the formula.
• Factice: a display-only replica bottle.

Sources: Luckyscent