wreck

1 of 2

noun

ˈrek 

1

: something cast up on the land by the sea especially after a shipwreck

2

a

: shipwreck

b

: the action of wrecking or fact or state of being wrecked : destruction

c

: a violent and destructive crash

was injured in a car wreck

3

a

: a hulk or the ruins of a wrecked ship

b

: the broken remains of something wrecked or otherwise ruined

c

: something disabled or in a state of ruin or dilapidation

the house was a wreck

also : a person or animal of broken constitution, health, or spirits

he's a nervous wreck

wreck

2 of 2

verb

wrecked; wrecking; wrecks

transitive verb

1

: to cast ashore

2

a

: to reduce to a ruinous state by or as if by violence

a country wrecked by war

ambition wrecked his marriage

b

: shipwreck

c

: to ruin, damage, or imperil by a wreck

wrecked the car

3

: bring about, wreak

wreck havoc

intransitive verb

1

: to become wrecked

2

: to rob, salvage, or repair wreckage or a wreck

Synonyms

Noun

• ashes
• debris
• detritus
• flotsam
• remains
• residue
• rubble
• ruins
• wreckage

Verb

• shipwreck
• strand

Examples of wreck in a Sentence

Noun

This car has never been in a wreck.

The stress of her final exams made her a wreck.

Dad was a nervous wreck on the day I had my surgery.

Verb

I wrecked my mother's car.

Many houses were wrecked by the hurricane.

The affair wrecked his marriage.

Bad weather wrecked our vacation.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Both the lower-series races saw their share of wrecks and lead changes, building up to the anticipated Ambetter Health 400 at 3 p.m. Sunday. —Shane Connuck, Charlotte Observer, 23 Feb. 2025

Hamlin was leading the race at the time of the last-lap crash, before Cole Custer turned into him to trigger the wreck that Byron avoided for victory. —Jordan Bianchi, The Athletic, 20 Feb. 2025

Verb

With Austin Cindric and Erik Jones locked in a side-by-side battle to decide a Daytona 500 qualifying race less than 100 yards from the finish line, cars wrecked behind them and NASCAR immediately hit the caution button. —Jeff Gluck, The Athletic, 24 Feb. 2025

As with other official statements over the previous two days, Webster said the cause is still under investigation and offered no reasons why the plane could have wrecked. —Bill Lukitsch The Minnesota Star Tribune (tns), arkansasonline.com, 21 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English wrec, wrek, borrowed from Anglo-French wrek & Medieval Latin wreccum, borrowed from Old Norse *wrek, rek, going back to *wrek-a- "something driven," derivative of Germanic *wrekan- "to drive out" — more at wreak

Verb

Middle English wrekkyd (past participle), probably derivative of wrek wreck entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Phrases Containing wreck

• nervous wreck
• train wreck

Rhymes for wreck

• beck
• breck
• check
• cheque
• czech
• deck
• fleck
• keck
• mech
• neck
• peck
• reck

Kids Definition

wreck

1 of 2 noun

ˈrek 

1

: goods cast upon the land by the sea after a shipwreck

2

: shipwreck entry 1 sense 2

3

: the action of wrecking

4

: a destructive crash

was injured in a car wreck

5

: the broken remains of something wrecked or ruined

6

: something in a state of ruin or decay

the old house was a wreck

7

: a person in poor health or spirits

wreck

2 of 2 verb

1

a

: to reduce to a state of ruin by or as if by violence

a country wrecked by war

jealousy wrecked their friendship

b

: shipwreck entry 2 sense 2

2

: to damage or ruin by a wreck

wrecked the car