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• wright
  wright

  noun

  a worker, especially a constructive worker (used chiefly in combination).
• Wright
  Wright

  noun

  Charles, born 1935, U.S. poet.

wright

¹ American  

[rahyt] / raɪt /

noun

1. a worker, especially a constructive worker (used chiefly in combination).

   a wheelwright; a playwright.

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Wright ² American  

[rahyt] / raɪt /

noun

1. Charles, born 1935, U.S. poet.

2. Frances or Fanny, 1795–1852, U.S. abolitionist and social reformer, born in Scotland.

3. Frank Lloyd, 1867–1959, U.S. architect.

4. James, 1927–80, U.S. poet and translator.

5. Joseph Wright of Derby, 1734–97, English painter.

6. Joseph, 1855–1935, English philologist and lexicographer.

7. Mary Kathryn Mickey, born 1935, U.S. golfer.

8. Orville 1871–1948, and his brother Wilbur, 1867–1912, U.S. aeronautical inventors.

9. Richard, 1908–60, U.S. novelist.

10. Russel 1904–76, U.S. industrial designer.

11. Willard Huntington S. S. Van Dine, 1888–1939, U.S. journalist, critic, and author.

12. a male given name.

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Wright ¹ British  

/ raɪt /

noun

1. Frank Lloyd. 1869–1959, US architect, whose designs include the Imperial Hotel, Tokyo (1916), the Guggenheim Museum, New York (1943), and many private houses. His "organic architecture" sought a close relationship between buildings and their natural surroundings

2. Joseph, known as Wright of Derby . 1734–97, British painter, noted for his paintings of industrial and scientific subjects, esp The Orrery (?1765) and The Air Pump (1768)

3. Joseph. 1855–1930, British philologist; editor of The English Dialect Dictionary (1898–1905)

4. Judith ( Arundel ). 1915–2000, Australian poet, critic, and conservationist. Her collections of poetry include The Moving Image (1946), Woman to Man (1949), and A Human Pattern (1990)

5. Richard. 1908–60, US Black novelist and short-story writer, best known for the novel Native Son (1940)

6. Wilbur (1867–1912) and his brother, Orville (1871–1948), US aviation pioneers, who designed and flew the first powered aircraft (1903)

7. William, known as Billy . 1924–94, English footballer: winner of 105 caps

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wright ² British  

/ raɪt /

noun

1. (now chiefly in combination) a person who creates, builds, or repairs something specified

   a playwright

   a shipwright

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Etymology

Origin of wright

before 900; Middle English; Old English wryhta, metathetic variant of wyrhta “worker”; akin to work

Explanation

If you make a living building furniture out of wood, you can call yourself a wright, which is an old fashioned way to say "maker or builder." You're more likely to see the word wright in combination with other words than on its own these days. Some common examples are playwright and wheelwright, or in other words, makers of plays and wheels. The origin of wright is the Old English wryhta, or "someone who works with wood." Originally, a wright was specifically a wood worker, but later it grew to include many different kinds of professions.

Example Sentences

Topics: , , , , colorado capitol building, jared wright, jonathan singer, kurtis lee, Denver Post, John Hickenlooper, Gov. John Hickenlooper, , ,

From Salon • Feb. 20, 2014

Tags: Baseball, david wright, mets, retaliation, terry collins Baseball evokes the image of a father having that catch with his son.

From New York Times • May 24, 2012

Play wright Samson Raphaelson balanced this fragile triangle on Broadway for many weeks in spite of its perilous distribution of sympathy in favor of middle-age against youth.

From Time Magazine Archive

Under regulations drawn up in 1570 by the school's patron, Sir Nicholas Bacon, enrollment was limited to 12 underprivileged boys who had "learned their accidence without books and can wright indifferently."

From Time Magazine Archive

I should say an upholsterer, or a mill wright, or some trade where his intelligence can help him on.

From A Final Reckoning A Tale of Bush Life in Australia by Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)

Related Words

• artisan