reeking
Giving off stench
Reeking means giving off a strong, unpleasant smell: The alley was reeking of garbage.
It can describe anything that stinks powerfully—a person, a place, a substance.
Figuratively, something reeking of corruption or desperation is saturated with it, the metaphor preserving the sense of an odor impossible to ignore.
Organic breakdown process
- putrefactionBacterial breakdown of tissue
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- spoilageFood degradation process
- moldForm-giving container
mildew · compost · carrion · carcass · garbage · sewage · rancid · fetid
Perceived atmospheric emission
- malodorUnpleasant, offensive smell
- fetorIntense, offensive odor
- miasmaHarmful atmospheric emanation
- ranknessOffensive odor quality
foulness · pungency · acridity · noisomeness · putridity · effluvium · stink · emanation
Airborne combustion byproduct
- exhaustUse up entirely
- chemicalsManufactured or isolated substances
- industrialOf factories and production
- toxicCapable of causing harm
acrid · noxious · gasoline · diesel · sulfurous · burning · charred · smoldering
rot
Organic breakdown process
- putrefactionBacterial breakdown of tissue
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- spoilageFood degradation process
mold · mildew · compost · carrion · carcass · garbage · sewage · rancid · fetid · putrescent
odor
Perceived atmospheric emission
rankness · foulness · pungency · acridity · noisomeness · putridity · effluvium · stink · emanation · whiff
squalor
Dirty, degraded living conditions
grimy · dingy · foul · dirty · grubby · muck · slime · sweat · urine · feces
smoke
Airborne combustion byproduct
- exhaustUse up entirely
- chemicalsManufactured or isolated substances
- industrialOf factories and production
toxic · acrid · noxious · gasoline · diesel · sulfurous · burning · charred · smoldering · fumes
corruption
Dishonest abuse of power
- scandalDisgraceful public affair
- dishonestyDisposition toward falsehood
- improprietyUnsuitable or inappropriate behavior
sleaze · hypocrisy · betrayal · deceit · treachery · fraud · cronyism · graft · bribery · malfeasance