wreak
to inflict or execute (punishment, vengeance, etc.): They wreaked havoc on the enemy.
to carry out the promptings of (one's rage, ill humor, will, desire, etc.), as on a victim or object: He wreaked his anger on the office staff.
Idioms about wreak
wreak havoc. See entry at wreak havoc.
Origin of wreak
1Other words for wreak
Other words from wreak
- wreak·er, noun
Words that may be confused with wreak
- wreak , wreck
Words Nearby wreak
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use wreak in a sentence
With coronavirus still wreaking havoc on the economy, social unrest scrambling consumer sentiment and marketers pressured to prove their spending is driving results, many are focusing their spending on programs happening just a few weeks out.
‘Nothing quite like being forced’: Publishers whip up quicker, cheaper ad products for advertisers | Max Willens | August 27, 2020 | DigidayThe coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on the supply chains of companies around the world—prompting firms in 80% of sectors globally to recalibrate their operations in some fashion, according to analysts at Bank of America Global Research.
It would cost $1 trillion to move global supply chains out of China—but the long-term gains could be worth it | reymashayekhi | August 19, 2020 | FortuneThere’s a limit to how much news we can take in as the virus wreaks havoc on our health, economy, and social lives.
For example, researchers have documented how the sweltering waters can bleach corals and wreak havoc on kelp forests.
Species may swim thousands of kilometers to escape ocean heat waves | Carolyn Gramling | August 10, 2020 | Science NewsKeep in mind this brilliant marketing hack from McDonald’s for times when a seemingly minor customer complaint starts to wreak havoc for your business by going viral.
Podcasts and internet marketing: Are you missing the boat? | Nasirabadi Reza | July 30, 2020 | Search Engine Watch
The mother also made a plea to the violent ones who wreak such havoc.
11 Children Shot in Milwaukee, One in Her Grandpa's Lap | Michael Daly | November 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe Fox miniseries 24: Live Another Day saw a massive drone wreak havoc on London.
Ethan Hawke's 'Good Kill': A Searing Indictment of America's Drone Warfare Obsession | Marlow Stern | September 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThey eat more than 500 kinds of plants and could wreak havoc if released into the North American environment.
Watch the green-clad moustachioed menace wreak havoc in Mario Kart 8, blowing up Waluigi and then giving a “death stare.”
But this is nothing compared to the devastating havoc a default will probably wreak.
I am allowed to live only so long as I am a willing tool, and foolish enough to wreak their evil will upon my people.
Valley of the Croen | Lee TarbellChaos is theirs, in which to wreak their mysterious vengeance: the den of the winds is more monstrous than that of lions.
Toilers of the Sea | Victor HugoIt was one of the last acts of Gage to plan with the Admiral how to wreak vengeance on the inhabitants of both those ports.
The Loyalists of America and Their Times, Vol. 1 of 2 | Egerton RyersonThen she fell again to thinking of her wrongs and planning how she should wreak vengeance upon Margaret Edes.
The Butterfly House | Mary E. Wilkins FreemanI was lifted up and cried aloud in the joy of having someone on whom to wreak my vengeance.
The Making of a Saint | William Somerset Maugham
British Dictionary definitions for wreak
/ (riːk) /
to inflict (vengeance, etc) or to cause (chaos, etc): to wreak havoc on the enemy
to express, or gratify (anger, hatred, etc)
archaic to take vengeance for
Origin of wreak
1wreak
Derived forms of wreak
- wreaker, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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