wrench
Americanverb (used with object)
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to twist suddenly and forcibly; pull, jerk, or force by a violent twist.
He wrenched the prisoner's wrist.
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to overstrain or injure (the ankle, knee, etc.) by a sudden, violent twist.
When she fell, she wrenched her ankle.
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to affect distressingly as if by a wrench.
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to wrest, as from the right use or meaning.
to wrench the facts out of context.
verb (used without object)
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to twist, turn, or move suddenly aside.
He wrenched away.
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to give a wrench or twist at something.
noun
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a wrenching movement; a sudden, violent twist.
With a quick wrench, she freed herself.
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a painful, straining twist, as of the ankle or wrist.
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a sharp, distressing strain, as to the feelings.
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a twisting or distortion, as of meaning.
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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.
verb
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to give (something) a sudden or violent twist or pull esp so as to remove (something) from that to which it is attached
to wrench a door off its hinges
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(tr) to twist suddenly so as to sprain (a limb)
to wrench one's ankle
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(tr) to give pain to
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(tr) to twist from the original meaning or purpose
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(intr) to make a sudden twisting motion
noun
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a forceful twist or pull
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an injury to a limb, caused by twisting
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sudden pain caused esp by parting
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a parting that is difficult or painful to make
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a distorting of the original meaning or purpose
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a spanner, esp one with adjustable jaws See also torque wrench
Other Word Forms
- outwrench verb (used with object)
- unwrenched adjective
- wrencher noun
- wrenchingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of wrench
before 1050; Middle English wrenchen (v.), Old English wrencan to twist, turn; cognate with German renken
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.
For Ruben Nizard, head of political risk research at Coface, a trade credit insurance company, this crisis could also "throw another wrench into the works by driving up maritime freight costs" and pushing up inflation.
From Barron's
Doctors had to forcibly wrench him from his mother at birth.
From Los Angeles Times
While the S&P 500 has wrenched up and down but gone pretty much nowhere this year, international, emerging-market, small stocks and value stocks have taken off.
He wrenched the lid open, and Danny’s insides felt like a sputtering candle.
From Literature
An assortment of wrenches swung from hooks across the front.
From Literature
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.
