shipwreck

[ship-rek]

noun

1. the destruction or loss of a ship, as by sinking.

2. the remains of a wrecked ship.

3. destruction or ruin.

   the shipwreck of one's hopes.

verb (used with object)

1. to cause to suffer shipwreck.

2. to destroy; ruin.

verb (used without object)

1. to suffer shipwreck.

shipwreck

/ ˈʃɪpˌrɛk /

noun

1. the partial or total destruction of a ship at sea

2. a wrecked ship or part of such a ship

3. ruin or destruction

   the shipwreck of all my hopes

verb

1. to wreck or destroy (a ship)

2. to bring to ruin or destruction

Word History and Origins

Origin of shipwreck¹

before 1100; Middle English shipwrech remains of a shipwreck; ship ¹, wreck; replacing Old English scipwræc ( wrack )

Word History and Origins

Origin of shipwreck¹

Old English scipwræc, from _ship + wræc something driven by the sea; see _wrack ²

Example Sentences

Flotsam means the leftover bits and pieces of a shipwreck, while jetsam means items thrown overboard on purpose.

Read more on Literature

“He means Hespawoo,” Cassiopeia added, for indeed, “sheeted ghost” was a phrase taken from “The Wreck of the Hesperus,” an absolutely thrilling poem about a shipwreck that the children knew quite well.

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And many fine poems have been written about shipwrecks, but only a foolish captain would knowingly set sail into stormy seas.

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Especially when there are so many shipwrecks, headless horsemen, gloomy talking birds, and other equally fascinating topics to write poems about?

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Some three million shipwrecks lie on the ocean floor, and along with them, much of human history hides beneath the waves.

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Related Words

• capsize 
• decline 
• descend 
• dig 
• dip 
• disappear 
• drill 
• drive 
• drop 
• drown 
• fall 
• go down 
• lower 
• overturn 
• plummet 
• plunge 
• ram 
• sag 
• settle 
• slump