reek

American  

[reek] / rik /

noun

1. a strong, unpleasant smell.

2. vapor or steam.

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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 British  

/ 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)

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noun

1. a strong offensive smell; stink

2. dialect smoke or steam; vapour

Usage

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.

Other Word Forms

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

Etymology

Origin of reek

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

Example Sentences

He reeked of fear, though he was clearly trying to hide it from the others.

From Literature

This one reeked even worse than the other: the straw seemed to be fermenting.

From Literature

He was in the dripping, reeking bowels of the earth.

From Literature

The shelter in the town hall car park has excrement smeared on the floor and reeks of urine.

From Barron's

It’s a near-catastrophic narrative oversight that, like a handful of other plot holes, reeks of studio meddling by Warner Bros. after early test screenings failed to meet expectations.

From Salon