train wreck

noun

variants or less commonly trainwreck

ˈtrān-ˌrek 

plural train wrecks also trainwrecks

1

: a violent and destructive crash involving a train

2

: an utter disaster or mess : a disastrous calamity or source of trouble

Six months later, with Washington facing a political train wreck in Iraq, whom did it call? The United Nations.

—Fareed Zakaria

The train wreck that was Florence Ballard could not be hidden anymore. … Those shows went on without a hitch, but with Ballard progressively drinking harder, disaster awaited them as they trekked from Miami to play several college dates across the South.

—Mark Ballard

… to create what is termed on Capitol Hill a train wreck—a budget crisis so awful that the President would have to seriously negotiate, and yield on taxes.

—Elizabeth Drew

Examples of train wreck in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This could be a train wreck for rubbernecking fans of college football and TMZ-style gossip. —Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2025

That wasn’t grit—it as a slow-motion train wreck. —Jason Walker Psyd, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025

Javen and Katisha As messy as Sophie-Kieran-Megan might seem, that’s nothing compared with the emotional train wreck that is Katisha’s journey. —Laura Bradley, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2025

Season 5 was — to put it mildly — a glorious train wreck. —Ana Gutierrez, Austin American Statesman, 31 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1874, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for train wreck

• aztec
• breakneck
• codec
• exec
• mixtec
• paycheck
• pinchbeck
• recheck
• redneck
• toltec
• beck
• breck

Kids Definition

train wreck

noun

1

: a violent and destructive crash involving a train

2

: an utter disaster or mess