wreckage

noun

wreck·​age ˈre-kij 

1

: the act of wrecking : the state of being wrecked

2

a

: something that has been wrecked

b

: broken and disordered parts or material from something wrecked

Synonyms of wreckage

• devastation
• destruction
• havoc
• demolition
• loss
• extinction

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

Within minutes, Silverman and the ambulance arrived at a storage facility parking lot behind a large one-story commercial building to find LAPD officers grabbing fire extinguishers and dragging a man away from the burning wreckage. — Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026

There’s no major wreckage here, nor is comeuppance meted out to the wrongdoers. — Natalia Winkelman, Variety, 20 Sep. 2026

Over 15 hours, the civil defense workers and volunteers managed to pull 22 survivors from the wreckage, authorities say. — Arkansas Online, 19 Sep. 2026

Officials are searching the wreckage and combing through maintenance logbooks and security footage. — Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1837, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

wreckage

noun

wreck·​age ˈrek-ij 

1

a

: the act of wrecking

b

: the state of being wrecked

2

: the remains of a wreck