stink

American  

[stingk] / stɪŋk /

verb (used without object)

stank, stunk, stunk, stinking

1. to emit a strong offensive smell.

   Synonyms:

   reek

2. to be offensive to honesty or propriety; to be in extremely bad repute or disfavor.

3. Informal. to be disgustingly inferior.

   That book stinks.

4. Slang. to have a large quantity of something (usually followed by of orwith ).

   They stink of money. She stinks with jewelry.

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verb (used with object)

stank, stunk, stunk, stinking

1. to cause to stink or be otherwise offensive (often followed byup ).

   an amateurish performance that really stank up the stage.

noun

1. a strong offensive smell; stench.

2. Informal. an unpleasant fuss; scandal.

   There was a big stink about his accepting a bribe.

3. (used with a singular verb) stinks, chemistry as a course of study.

verb phrase

1. stink out to repel or drive out by means of a highly offensive smell.

stink British  

/ stɪŋk /

noun

1. a strong foul smell; stench

2. slang a great deal of trouble (esp in the phrase to make or raise a stink )

3. intensely; furiously

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verb

1. to emit a foul smell

2. slang to be thoroughly bad or abhorrent

   this town stinks

3. informal to have a very bad reputation

   his name stinks

4. to be of poor quality

5. slang to have or appear to have an excessive amount (of money)

6. informal to cause to stink

stink Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing stink

• big stink
• make a stink
• smell (stink) up

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Other Word Forms

• outstink verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of stink

First recorded before 900; (verb) Middle English stinken, Old English stincan; (noun) Middle English, derivative of the verb; cognate with German stinken (verb); stench

Explanation

When things stink, they smell terrible. If you throw food scraps in your kitchen trash can, it will eventually start to stink. You can say that something stinks — your dog's breath, or your brother's feet — and you can call the offensive odor itself a stink. Figuratively, something can stink even if it doesn't literally smell bad: "I'm sorry, but that movie you recommended really stinks. It's awful." The Old English root is stincan, "emit a smell of any kind, or exhale."

Example Sentences

The spiders benefit humans by acting as natural pest control, eating mosquitoes, biting flies and invasive stink bugs.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

Taken along with the overall stink that still hangs on the Globes, which joins the general toxicity wafting in the air a mere 11 days into 2026, however, it’s all pretty deflating.

From Salon • Jan. 12, 2026

The governor scoffs, “man is conceived in sin and born in corruption and he passeth from the stink of the didie to the stench of the shroud. There is always something.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 23, 2025

Two Indian researchers decided this wasn't just about stink - it was about science.

From BBC • Sep. 27, 2025

I stood very still so that I didn’t accidentally splash Tina or send stink waves in her direction.

From "Liar, Liar" by Gary Paulsen

Related Words

• stench