From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishexcrescenceex‧cres‧cence /ɪkˈskresəns/ noun [countable] formal 1 UGLYsomething that is bad, unnecessary, or ugly – used to show disapproval The new museum is nothing but an excrescence on the urban landscape.2 HBUGLYan ugly growth on an animal or plant
Examples from the Corpus
excrescence• The scrolls of the ears flat against the side of the skull were so large that they looked like abnormal excrescences.• It's an excrescence, a monstrosity, some tardy addition to the agenda.• There are excrescences one could do without on this side of the town.• The stair banisters had excrescences shaped like pew ends every few treads.• An irritating excrescence upon the summit of international union.• But the bust format ensures a rudimentary form without gestural and signifying elements or excrescences.• They wanted to peel away the excrescence and get back to the simple Gospel message itself.• If my body was now trim and neat, redeemed from the excrescences of flesh, it was also clean.Origin excrescence (1400-1500) Latin excrescens, present participle of excrescere “to grow out”, from crescere “to grow” 