wrench

[rench]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR wrench ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to twist suddenly and forcibly; pull, jerk, or force by a violent twist: He wrenched the prisoner's wrist.

to overstrain or injure (the ankle, knee, etc.) by a sudden, violent twist: When she fell, she wrenched her ankle.

to affect distressingly as if by a wrench.

to wrest, as from the right use or meaning: to wrench the facts out of context.

verb (used without object)

to twist, turn, or move suddenly aside: He wrenched away.

to give a wrench or twist at something.

noun

a wrenching movement; a sudden, violent twist: With a quick wrench, she freed herself.

a painful, straining twist, as of the ankle or wrist.

a sharp, distressing strain, as to the feelings.

a twisting or distortion, as of meaning.

a tool for gripping and turning or twisting the head of a bolt, a nut, a pipe, or the like, commonly consisting of a bar of metal with fixed or adjustable jaws.

Origin of wrench

before 1050; Middle English wrenchen (v.), Old English wrencan to twist, turn; cognate with German renken

Related formswrench·er, nounwrench·ing·ly, adverbout·wrench, verb (used with object)un·wrenched, adjective

Can be confusedranch wrench

Synonyms for wrench

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR wrench ON THESAURUS.COM

4. distort, twist, warp.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for wrenched

wrest, tweak, distort, rip, bend, dislocate, wring, sprain, yank, dislodge, pull, pervert, rend, screw, tear, pinch, compel, coerce, contort, twist

Examples from the Web for wrenched

Contemporary Examples of wrenched

One especially frantic Hasid had wrenched his wife to death while fixing his station wagon in front of all nine of his children.
A Jewish Ex-Con Recalls Keeping Kosher with the Faithful in Prison
Daniel Genis
May 11, 2014
On the day the game came out, I played for a few hours, then wrenched myself away to play tennis with a friend.
Diablo 3 Is Finally Here and One Player Ponders Its Ability to Take Over His Life
Jesse Singal
May 26, 2012

Historical Examples of wrenched

He leaped toward Garson—would have wrenched the pistol from the other's grasp.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
"I will go," snarled Holknecht, and he wrenched from my grasp and darted toward the door.
City of Endless Night
Milo Hastings
He found a waving foot with his right hand; wrenched it mightily.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, November, 1930
Various
To give it to Thee I have wrenched it from all worldly affection.
Abbe Mouret's Transgression
Emile Zola
He had wrenched them severely, how severely he scarcely dared think.
Fair Harbor
Joseph Crosby Lincoln

British Dictionary definitions for wrenched

wrench

verb

to give (something) a sudden or violent twist or pull esp so as to remove (something) from that to which it is attachedto wrench a door off its hinges

(tr) to twist suddenly so as to sprain (a limb)to wrench one's ankle

(tr) to give pain to

(tr) to twist from the original meaning or purpose

(intr) to make a sudden twisting motion

noun

a forceful twist or pull

an injury to a limb, caused by twisting

sudden pain caused esp by parting

a parting that is difficult or painful to make

a distorting of the original meaning or purpose

a spanner, esp one with adjustable jawsSee also torque wrench

Word Origin for wrench

Old English wrencan; related to Old High German renken, Lithuanian rangyti to twist. See wrinkle 1

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

Word Origin and History for wrenched

wrench

Old English wrencan "to twist," from Proto-Germanic *wrankijanan (cf. Old High German renken, German renken "to twist, wrench," Old English wringan "to wring"), from PIE *wreng- "to turn" (cf. Sanskrit vrnakti "turns, twists," Lithuanian rengtis "to grow crooked, to writhe"), nasalized variant of *werg- "to turn" (cf. Latin vergere "to turn, tend toward"), from root *wer- (3) "to turn, bend" (see versus). Related: Wrenched, wrenching.

wrench

Old English wrenc "a twisting, artifice, trick;" see wrench (v.). The meaning "tool with jaws for turning" is first recorded 1794.

Idioms and Phrases with wrenched

wrench

see throw a monkey wrench.