wreak

verb \ ˈrēk also ˈrek \

|Updated on: 7 Aug 2018

Examples: wreak in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of wreak

wreaked; wreaking; wreaks

transitive verb

1 a archaic : avenge

b : to cause the infliction of (vengeance or punishment)

2 : to give free play or course to (malevolent feeling)

3 : bring about, cause

wreak havoc

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Examples of wreak in a Sentence

Gangs have been wreaking mayhem in the city.

Recent Examples of wreak from the Web

Reports of harmful algal blooms grow year after year, wreaking havoc on fishing and tourism seasons in Lake Erie, killing dogs and causing nausea and rashes for the unsuspecting swimmer.

— emily hopkins, Cincinnati.com, "Your produce is less healthy than it was 70 years ago. These farmers might change that," 4 July 2018
With 13 goals and 12 assists last season, the 29-year-old is certainly a strong presence in attack, and with blistering pace, Willian has the ability to wreak havoc on defences with ease.

— SI.com, "Chelsea Demand €80m for Wantaway Winger Willian Amid Reports of Barcelona Interest," 3 July 2018
According to the Undefeated, almost 70 percent of the NFL players wreaking havoc on their bodies and brains to play the game are black.

— otis r. taylor jr., SFChronicle.com, "Oakland journalist sees black culture shifting from music to sports," 25 June 2018
That has left the most vulnerable patients often ping-ponging between institutions, wreaking havoc with patients' care.

— jordan rau, chicagotribune.com, "Medicare takes aim at boomerang hospitalizations of nursing home patients," 22 June 2018
On the big screen, robots such as the Terminator are monsters, wreaking havoc on people and civilization.

— hiawatha bray, BostonGlobe.com, "Afraid of robots? The feeling is mutual," 20 June 2018
At Vox, Brad Plumer wrote about what happens when the sun erupts and sends space weather our way to wreak havoc on Earth.

— brian resnick, Vox, "The summer solstice is Thursday: 6 things to know about the longest day of the year," 19 June 2018
The public’s perplexing support of strikers wreaking havoc on the economy shows just how long a shadow Brazil’s endemic scandals have cast.

— The Economist, "Brazil reinstates fuel subsidies after a disruptive lorry strike," 31 May 2018
Record-breaking snow also accompanied the cold in many areas, wreaking havoc with baseball schedules and seriously delaying the onset of spring.

— doyle rice, USA TODAY, "May shaping up as USA's hottest on record, breaking mark set during 1934 Dust Bowl," 30 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wreak.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Wreak is a venerable word that first appeared in Old English as wrecan, meaning "to drive, drive out, punish, or avenge." "Wrecan" is related to a number of similar words in the Germanic languages, including Middle Dutch "wreken" ("to punish, avenge"), Old High German rehhan ("to avenge"), Old Norse "reka" ("to drive, push, or avenge"), and Gothic "wrikan" ("to persecute"). It may also be related to Latin urgēre ("to drive on, urge"), the source of the English verb "urge." In modern English, vengeance is a common object of the verb "wreak," reflecting one of its earlier uses in the sense "to take vengeance for" - as when Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus proclaims "We will solicit heaven, and move the gods / To send down Justice for to wreak our wrongs."

Origin and Etymology of wreak

Middle English wreken "to drive out, avenge, vent, express (anger, etc.)," going back to Old English wrecan "to press forward, drive out, banish, avenge, punish," going back to Germanic *wrekan- "to drive out, pursue" (whence Old Saxon wrekan "to avenge," Old High German rehhan, Old Norse reka "to drive, thrust, take vengeance," Gothic wrikan "to persecute"), of uncertain origin

Note: Placed by some under Indo-European *u̯reg- "follow a track" (whence, allegedly, Sanskrit vrajant- "wandering," Latin urgēre "to press, weigh down"), though the semantic relations between compared forms are not close.

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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