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reek

[reek]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR reek ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a strong, unpleasant smell.
vapor or steam.

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

to give off; emit; exude.
to expose to or treat with smoke.

RELATED WORDS

fetid, foul, funky, high, malodorous, mephitic, noisome, putrid, rancid, rank, stinking, strong, olid, reeking, whiffy

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
Related formsreek·er, nounreek·ing·ly, adverbreek·y, adjective

Synonyms for reek

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR reek ON THESAURUS.COM
5. steam, smoke, fume.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for reeky

Historical Examples of reeky

British Dictionary definitions for reeky

reek

verb

(intr) to give off or emit a strong unpleasant odour; smell or stink
(intr often foll by of) to be permeated (by); be redolent (of)the letter reeks of subservience
(tr) to treat with smoke; fumigate
(tr) mainly dialect to give off or emit (smoke, fumes, vapour, etc)

noun

a strong offensive smell; stink
mainly dialect smoke or steam; vapour
Derived Formsreeking, adjectivereekingly, adverbreeky, adjective

Word Origin for reek

Old English rēocan; related to Old Frisian riāka to smoke, Old High German rouhhan, Old Norse rjūka to smoke, steam
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for reeky
adj.

c.1400, "giving out offensive vapors," from reek (n.) + -y (2). Meaning "smoky" is c.1600. Related: Reekily; reekiness.

reek

v.

Old English recan (Anglian), reocan (West Saxon) "emit smoke," from Proto-Germanic *reukanan (cf. Old Frisian reka "smoke," Middle Dutch roken, Dutch rieken "to smoke," Old High German riohhan "to smoke, steam," German rauchen "to smoke," riechen "to smell").

Originally a strong verb, with past tense reac, past participle gereocen, but occasionally showing weak conjugation in Old English. Meaning "to emit smoke;" meaning "to emit a bad smell" is recorded from 1710 via sense "be heated and perspiring" (early 15c.). Related: Reeked; reeking.

reek

n.

Old English rec (Anglian), riec (West Saxon), "smoke from burning material," probably from a Scandinavian source, cf. Old Norse reykr, Danish rǿg, Swedish rök "smoke, steam," from Proto-Germanic *raukiz (cf. Old Frisian rek, Middle Dutch rooc, Old High German rouh, German Rauch "smoke, steam"), from PIE *reug- "to vomit, belch;" also "smoke, cloud." Sense of "stench" is attested 1650s, via the notion of "that which rises" (cf. reek (v.)).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper