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 of wreck

Noun

• wreckage
• debris
• rubble
• ruins
• remains

Verb

• scuttle
• shipwreck

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

Police charged a 50-year-old man with felony death by vehicle and driving while impaired in a fatal wreck in Gastonia on Wednesday night, court records show. —Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 8 Jan. 2026

McCarthy, 57, died at the site of the wreck. —City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Jan. 2026

Verb

But the Panthers could only score 10 points, as Denver’s fearsome pass rush wrecked Carolina’s best chance at a Super Bowl win. —Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 6 Jan. 2026

The one that is responsible, once and for all, for fixing a defense that’s been complicit in wrecking three straight seasons of Burrow, Chase and Higgins. —Paul Dehner Jr, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026

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