wrought
Americanverb
adjective
-
elaborated; embellished.
-
not rough or crude.
-
produced or shaped by beating with a hammer, as iron or silver articles.
verb
adjective
-
metallurgy shaped by hammering or beating
-
(often in combination) formed, fashioned, or worked as specified
well-wrought
-
decorated or made with delicate care
Usage
Wrought is sometimes used as if it were the past tense and past participle of wreak as in the hurricane wrought havoc in coastal areas. Many people think this use is incorrect
Synonym Usage
See worked.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of wrought
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English wroght, metathetic variant of worht, past participle of worchen “to work”; see origin at work
Explanation
Wrought is an adjective that means "molded, shaped, or manufactured." A wrought-iron fence has been shaped to fit a particular ornamental style. Wrought is most often used as an adjective to describe the shaping, altering, molding, and manufacturing of various metals. As a verb, wrought is the archaic past tense of the word work but is often confused as a past tense for the word wreak, which means "to cause damage." The confusion arises from the fact that the phrase "wrought havoc" is an acceptable variant of the phrase "wreaked havoc," but even here, wrought is etymologically rooted in the word work not wreak.
Vocabulary lists containing wrought
100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know
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100 SAT words Beginning with W,X,Y, and Z
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"Mother Tongue" by Amy Tan
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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.
The real-life drama seems somehow appropriate for the story of a London crime family wrought with family tensions.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
When they start shooting a movie together, they begin to understand their connection to this ancient evil, and their place in a cyclical inferno wrought by absent parents and bad weather.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
But the transformations wrought by Gaudí and his collaborators are a triumph of architectural and sculptural imagination that has no real analogue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
After two major earthquakes hit Venezuela on Wednesday, aerial footage has revealed the destruction wrought in the coastal city of La Guaira.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
Upon their shields they bore a strange device: a small white hand in the centre of a black field; on the front of their iron helms was set an S-rune, wrought of some white metal.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
