1
as in smelly
having an unpleasant smell
came home from their trip to find stinking garbage that had been left in the kitchen
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in drunk
slang
being under the influence of alcohol
warned her husband not to come home stinking—or he'd be sleeping on the couch
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in damn
to a great degree
a huge, showy house that screams, "We're stinking rich!"
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stinking
Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 22 Dec. 2019
Muttaiah said the man inside the stinking manhole was working without any safety equipment — no gloves, no shoes, no supplemental oxygen.
—Joanna Slater, Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2019
GothamGetty Images Aren't expectant parents Jenna Dewan and Steve Kazee just so stinking cute?
—Emily Dixon, Marie Claire, 3 Dec. 2019
Second, the Huskies covered the spread as the favorite one stinking time?
—Mike Anthony, courant.com, 29 Aug. 2019
The area included a stinking heap: years of goat dung in layers up to a foot thick.
—Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 28 Aug. 2019
Man, that’s one crazy set of numbers, not to mention a stinking pile of horse manure, as the two long-revered defenders continue to make one sensational play after another . .
—Bruce Jenkins, SFChronicle.com, 19 July 2019
But his mechanics were already pretty stinking good.
—Robert Klemko, SI.com, 15 July 2019
Eventually, more fat, oil, and grease congeal onto the mess and build up into giant stinking globs.
—National Geographic, 16 Aug. 2017
Adjective
This is about a team with a top-10 payroll whose GM committed too stinking much of it to dogs that can’t, or won’t, pull the sled.
—Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 22 Dec. 2019
Muttaiah said the man inside the stinking manhole was working without any safety equipment — no gloves, no shoes, no supplemental oxygen.
—Joanna Slater, Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2019
GothamGetty Images Aren't expectant parents Jenna Dewan and Steve Kazee just so stinking cute?
—Emily Dixon, Marie Claire, 3 Dec. 2019
Second, the Huskies covered the spread as the favorite one stinking time?
—Mike Anthony, courant.com, 29 Aug. 2019
The area included a stinking heap: years of goat dung in layers up to a foot thick.
—Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 28 Aug. 2019
Man, that’s one crazy set of numbers, not to mention a stinking pile of horse manure, as the two long-revered defenders continue to make one sensational play after another . .
—Bruce Jenkins, SFChronicle.com, 19 July 2019
But his mechanics were already pretty stinking good.
—Robert Klemko, SI.com, 15 July 2019
Eventually, more fat, oil, and grease congeal onto the mess and build up into giant stinking globs.
—National Geographic, 16 Aug. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stinking
Adjective
-
Banned in Europe In addition to being a carcinogen, formaldehyde, a colorless and smelly gas, can cause rashes and can sicken those who breathe it in, according to the FDA.—
Ronnie Cohen,
NPR,
8 May 2025
-
Usually, a smelly refrigerator is caused by specific foods inside it and how they're stored.—
Halee Miller Van Ryswyk,
Better Homes & Gardens,
5 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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And maybe a little drunk and sick from all that oily food and crappy wine.—
Helen Schulman,
The Atlantic,
26 June 2025
-
But try bouncing from a pop star version of 1500s English queen Anne Boleyn to a drunk 1985 housewife to a lusty 1955 teenager.—
Jed Gottlieb,
Boston Herald,
22 June 2025
Verb
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Directed by Robert Eggers, the gothic horror film sees newlyweds Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) and Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) haunted by the treacherous, blood-sucking Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgard).—
EW.com,
EW.com,
30 Dec. 2024
-
This time around, even critics were convinced, joining in with libidinous fans to praise the blood-sucking second season, which was recently nominated for two Critics Choice Awards after being largely snubbed by voting bodies last year.—
Elaina Patton,
NBC News,
27 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Assistant state’s attorneys will assist police in obtaining search warrants to conduct blood, breath or urine tests on people who are stopped on suspicion of drunken driving and refuse to submit to testing as required by Illinois law, the release said.—
Mike Danahey,
Chicago Tribune,
30 June 2025
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In a stunning decision, the jury in her retrial voted unanimously to only convict Read of drunken driving sparing her any jail time.—
Joe Dwinell,
Boston Herald,
28 June 2025
Adverb
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The car scenes are rough, authentic, and often deeply compelling — mainly because the fresh-faced Bridges is so damned charismatic.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
27 June 2025
-
While Nintendo mostly conceded the corporate tug-of-war over graphical prowess back in 2006 with the Wii, the general plateau of visual enhancements over the last two generations means that games running on Switch 2 look pretty damned good even compared to more premium devices.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
5 June 2025
Verb
-
Deep in the forest, the air whips by cold and fast and smelling of redwoods.—
Nick Czap,
Robb Report,
26 Dec. 2024
-
Especially when that includes boarding a Christmastime caboose brimming with holiday decor, smelling hot cocoa wafting through the cars, and enjoying plenty of picturesque views.—
Perri Ormont Blumberg Fox News,
Fox News,
26 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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By the time Wood, the former Padres prospect who went to Washington in 2022 in the trade for Juan Soto, hit a three-run homer that clanged off the right field foul pole in the eighth inning to put the almost-final touch on the Nationals’ 10-6 victory, there was no real overt reaction.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 June 2025
-
Your husband is foul for not calling out her garbage behavior.—
Virginia Chamlee,
People.com,
23 June 2025
Adjective
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Anderson, who was also the Rays’ assistant pitching coach in 2008 and 2009, got his feet wet in the broadcast business in 2007 with Cleveland.—
Tom Layberger,
Forbes.com,
30 June 2025
-
Groundwater banking captures surplus surface water during wet periods and deposits it in aquifers for future use.—
Matthew Kayser,
USA Today,
30 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Stinking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stinking. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.
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