Reeked

As a detective, my first step when faced with a crossword clue is to carefully examine the number of letters given in order to assess the length of the answer. In the case of the clue ‘Reeked‘, the answer had five letters, which immediately suggested to me that it would need to be a short, punchy word. Next, I ruminated on the meaning of the word ‘reeked‘, and the associations and connotations that came to mind. “Reeked” brings to mind unpleasant smells and offensive odors, as well as uncleanliness and a general air of foulness. Drawing upon this insight, I began to search for a word that might fit the bill, and after a few moments of deliberation, ‘STANK‘ popped into my mind. After writing it down and counting the letters, I realized it was a perfect fit. The word ‘stank‘ connotes all of the unsavory attributes that come to mind when we think of something that reeks- it is short, direct, and packs a punch in its ability to express a powerful, and pungent odor. All in all, the process of solving this clue was an exercise in creative wordplay and imaginative problem-solving, and it left me with a satisfied sense of accomplishment.