wreckage

wreck·age | \ ˈre-kij

How to pronounce wreckage (audio)

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Definition of wreckage

1 : the act of wrecking : the state of being wrecked

2a : something that has been wrecked

b : broken and disordered parts or material from something wrecked

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Examples of wreckage in a Sentence

Workers sifted through the wreckage of the building, searching for bodies. They cleared the wreckage from the track.

Recent Examples on the Web Others in the crowd saw something different in the wreckage. — Tim Sullivan And Amy Forliti, The Christian Science Monitor, "Minneapolis protests turn violent as mayor appeals for peace," 29 May 2020 But economists including former Bank of England official Charles Goodhart, and investors such as BNP Paribas Asset Management, are asking if a different phenomenon lurks in the wreckage of global growth. — Anchalee Worrachate, Bloomberg.com, "Fears Mount About Inflation Returning With a Vengeance," 10 May 2020 Green bundles that appeared to be surgical gowns were pictured laying in the wreckage. — USA TODAY, "Treehouse isolation, python masks, farm-to-food bank: News from around our 50 states," 21 Apr. 2020 At present, Russia is based in the Middle East only in the wreckage of Syria. — Mark Helprin, National Review, "American Foreign and Defense Policy: Between Scylla and Charybdis," 16 Apr. 2020 Read more: The other man was trapped in the wreckage and died. — Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, "Gas explosion obliterates Detroit house, kills 1 and injures 2 others," 20 Mar. 2020 Emergency crews rescued several people trapped in the wreckage after the bus crashed around 10:20 a.m. on State Route 76, about 45 miles north of San Diego, the North County Fire Protection District said. — BostonGlobe.com, "Ex-US envoy to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch has book deal," 22 Feb. 2020 The driver of the other car survived the crash but the passenger, 19-year-old Jonathan Dantigance II, died in the wreckage, according to court records. — Cory Shaffer, cleveland, "Cleveland man charged in deadly Thanksgiving crash had PCP in his system, indictment says," 4 Feb. 2020 Officials decided to haul the bow out to sea and sink it in deep water where cold temperatures would solidify the oil and keep it safely entombed in the wreckage. — oregonlive, "Napalm, a torpedo and 70,000 gallons of spilled oil: An environmental disaster on the Oregon coast, 21 years later," 4 Feb. 2020

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

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Last Updated

3 Jun 2020

Cite this Entry

“Wreckage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wreckage. Accessed 7 Jun. 2020.

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More Definitions for wreckage

wreckage

noun

English Language Learners Definition of wreckage

: the broken parts of a vehicle, building, etc., that has been badly damaged or destroyed

See the full definition for wreckage in the English Language Learners Dictionary

wreckage

wreck·age | \ ˈre-kij

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Kids Definition of wreckage

1 : the remains of a wreck I therefore set out … to search for whatever wreckage the waves had washed ashore.— Scott O'Dell, Island of the Blue Dolphins

2 : the act of wrecking : the state of being wrecked

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