reek

[reek]

noun

1. a strong, unpleasant smell.

2. vapor or steam.

verb (used without object)

1. to smell strongly and unpleasantly.

2. to be strongly pervaded with something unpleasant or offensive.

3. to give off steam, smoke, etc.

   Synonyms: fume, smoke, steam

4. to be wet with sweat, blood, etc.

verb (used with object)

1. to give off; emit; exude.

2. to expose to or treat with smoke.

reek

/ riːk /

verb

1. (intr) to give off or emit a strong unpleasant odour; smell or stink

2. to be permeated (by); be redolent (of)

   the letter reeks of subservience

3. (tr) to treat with smoke; fumigate

4. dialect,  (tr) to give off or emit (smoke, fumes, vapour, etc)

noun

1. a strong offensive smell; stink

2. dialect,  smoke or steam; vapour

Other Word Forms

• reeker noun
• reekingly adverb
• reeky adjective
• reeking adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of reek¹

before 900; (noun) Middle English rek ( e ), Old English rēc smoke; cognate with German rauch, Dutch rook, Old Norse reykr; (v.) Middle English reken to smoke, steam, Old English rēocan

Word History and Origins

Origin of reek¹

Old English rēocan ; related to Old Frisian riāka to smoke, Old High German rouhhan , Old Norse rjūka to smoke, steam

Example Sentences

Tinh said the two women reeked of alcohol and, at times, slurred their words.

From Los Angeles Times

Spurs now enter the final few weeks of the window reeking of desperation.

From BBC

"The pilot did not have a stitch on and reeked of alcohol," an anonymous source inside the airline was quoted by the paper as saying.

From BBC

A spokesman for Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said the claims “reek of a bad faith attempt to sink a nominee.”

From Salon

The kind that reeks of washed rinds, that crunches with tyrosine crystals, that bears the name of a tiny European village in delicate, old-world type.

From Salon

When To Use

What’s the difference between reek and wreak?

Reek most commonly means to give off a strong, unpleasant odor, as in Your socks reek, dude. Wreak means to inflict or carry out something, especially something harmful—it’s most commonly used in the phrase wreak havoc, meaning to cause chaos or destruction or both.While wreak is only ever used as a verb, reek can also be used as a noun meaning a strong, unpleasant smell, though this use is much less common.Reek usually functions without an object, though in some cases it is followed by the word of and the particular smell, as in It reeks of onions in here. This is also the case when reek is used in a more figurative way meaning to be penetrated or saturated with something negative, as in This case reeks of corruption.Wreak is always used with an object, usually some negative effect, as in The storm is expected to wreak destruction throughout the region.Reek and wreak are pronounced exactly the same, so it can be hard to remember which one is which, but you can remember that wreak begins with a w because it is often used in the context of things getting wrecked.Here’s an example of reek and wreak used correctly in the same sentence.Example: I like cooking with leeks, but my wife thinks they reek and says they wreak havoc on her ability to smell anything else.Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between reeking and wreaking.