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• wrath
  wrath

  noun

  strong, stern, or fierce anger; deeply resentful indignation; ire.
• Wrath
  Wrath

  noun

  Cape, a high promontory in NW Scotland: most NW point on mainland.

Trivia Time

In Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, which classic literary work does Khan quote to Captain Kirk?

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wrath

¹ American  

[rath, rahth, rawth] / ræθ, rɑθ, rɔθ /

noun

1. strong, stern, or fierce anger; deeply resentful indignation; ire.

   Synonyms:

   choler, fury, resentment, rage

2. vengeance or punishment as the consequence of anger.

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adjective

1. Archaic. wroth.

Wrath ² American  

[rath] / ræθ /

noun

1. Cape, a high promontory in NW Scotland: most NW point on mainland.

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wrath ¹ British  

/ rɒθ /

noun

1. angry, violent, or stern indignation

2. divine vengeance or retribution

3. archaic a fit of anger or an act resulting from anger

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adjective

1. obsolete incensed; angry

Wrath ² British  

/ rɔːθ, rɒθ /

noun

1. a promontory at the NW extremity of the Scottish mainland

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Other Word Forms

• wrathless
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of wrath

First recorded before 900; (for the noun) Middle English wraththe, Old English wrǣththo, equivalent to wrāth wroth + -tho -th ¹; (for the adjective) variant of wroth by association with the noun

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Explanation

Wrath is great anger that expresses itself in a desire to punish someone: Noah saw the flood as a sign of the wrath of God. Wrath is also used figuratively of things that behave in a violent way: Earthquakes are the wrath of the sea. This noun and the corresponding adjective wrathful are in literary use but are formal or old-fashioned words, that crop up in fantasy fiction or movies set in prehistoric times.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wrath Wrath

The Associated Press news agency drew his wrath for refusing to adopt the name "Gulf of America" in place of "Gulf of Mexico."

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

"They've already felt the wrath of the US," she said.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

Of course, as so many 19th-century paintings capture, left out of this telling is that Orestes’ crimes incur the Furies’ wrath.

From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2026

“Like Shakespeare’s Iago, enraged by being passed over for promotion, he turned his wrath on his mentor and leader,” the complaint said, about Harris.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026

“I’ll go,” he said at last, stopping himself from wondering if he could actually risk it—risk his father’s and Chaol’s wrath, and what might happen if he decided to damn the consequences.

From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas

Many of the Shetland cast and crew plan to attend the premiere of Wrath of the Gods at the horror festival FrightFest in London on Friday.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026

We’ve got to throw in ‘The Grapes of Wrath.’

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

After leaving the service, he began competing in Parkruns and walked the Cape Wrath Trail in 2021.

From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026

In “Aguirre, the Wrath of God,” hundreds of little monkeys invaded the raft where Aguirre is half dead, drifting on the Amazon.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026

Your son Dale will go south in Wraith, past Cape Wrath and the Broken Arm, all along the coast of Dome as far as the Arbor.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin

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