wrecker
Americannoun
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wreckers
plural
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a person or thing that wrecks.
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a person, car, or train employed in removing wreckage, debris, etc., as from railroad tracks.
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Also called tow car, tow truck. a vehicle equipped with a mechanical apparatus for hoisting and pulling, used to tow wrecked, disabled, or stalled automobiles.
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Also called housewrecker. a person whose business it is to demolish and remove houses or other buildings, as in clearing sites for other use.
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a person or vessel employed in recovering salvage from wrecked or disabled vessels.
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a person who plunders wrecks, especially after exhibiting false signals in order to cause shipwrecks.
noun
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a person or thing that ruins or destroys
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a person whose job is to demolish buildings or dismantle cars
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(formerly) a person who lures ships to destruction to plunder the wreckage
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another word for tow truck
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of wrecker
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Maxx remains on track to return during the offseason program and will undoubtedly return as the dominant game wrecker he has been these past seven seasons,” Crosby’s agent, CJ LaBoy, wrote on X.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026
The wrong approach shot could be a card wrecker and potentially provide pivotal drama at the death.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2023
The wrecker service owner recalled moving the same crane a few years before and contacted its owner, who denied having given it away.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 18, 2022
Says Davis: "He’s a game wrecker, watching his film and just seeing him. He’s explosive. He’s definitely one of those guys you have to make sure to keep contained."
From Fox News ● Nov. 30, 2021
Nearby, the Strawberry Mesa Body Shop and Pipe Queen crowd was located, Ruby Archuleta behind the wheel of the wrecker, with Claudio Garcia beside her.
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
The car has had difficulty getting back to pit road with a flat tire and wreckers were on standby all over the track at Las Vegas to give a push when needed.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 7, 2022
Their heavy tow trucks, commonly known as "wreckers", can ostensibly help clear the roads, but trucker Doug Rowland says many may be reluctant to get involved for both political and practical reasons.
From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2022
Sometimes you have to use multiple wreckers to move a truck around.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 8, 2022
“They do a great job of getting push in the pocket, they’re really sound in their rush lanes and they’ve got game wreckers up front.”
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 1, 2021
“You made this mess?” she said, like she couldn’t quite believe it, like what she’d expected me to say was that a roving band of house wreckers had come through during the night.
From "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd
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