wrought

1 of 2

adjective

ˈrȯt 

1

: worked into shape by artistry or effort

carefully wrought essays

2

: elaborately embellished : ornamented

3

: processed for use : manufactured

wrought silk

4

: beaten into shape by tools : hammered

—used of metals

5

: deeply stirred : excited

—often used with up

gets easily wrought up over nothing

wrought

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of work

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The Uses of Wrought

Wrought may function as the past or the past participle form of the verb work. While not as common as it once was, this past-tense form still is encountered in such combinations as "wrought havoc." Since "wreak havoc" is also a familiar pairing, many people assume that wrought is the past tense of wreak, but the two are actually distinct. Although it still exists as a verb, wrought is more often used today as an adjective, a role in which it has a number of meanings. Most of these are found referring to things or materials which have been in some way worked by people (as in wrought iron or "carefully wrought prose"), but one sense ("deeply stirred") is typically used in describing emotions. When employed in this sense, wrought is often found paired with up (as in "he found himself wrought up over the news").

Examples of wrought in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Breakfast, lunch, and evening tapas are served at the Farmhouse restaurant, where tables spill onto a new garden shaded by olive trees and furnished with wrought-iron chairs topped with striped and botanical-print cushions. —Siobhan Reid, Travel + Leisure, 8 Sep. 2025

Early cans were massive hunks of metal, sometimes literal wrought iron. —Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 28 Aug. 2025

The best of these have little wrought-iron balconies with café tables right by the water’s edge. —Ann Abel, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2025

All the better for tense compositions that confronted decay and disease, pain and nihilism, and dread and destruction with all the subtlety of a circular saw biting into a wrought-iron fence. —Bob Gendron, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025

An overhead view of the spiral staircase with wrought-iron railing. —Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 9 Aug. 2025

During the 1984 filming, Reynolds was accidentally clobbered with a wrought-iron chair during a fight scene. —Gillian Telling, People.com, 4 Aug. 2025

Several discreet patio tables in wrought iron scattered the court, flower-garden borders, tiny ponds, overhanging sun umbrellas in gay colors. —Literary Hub, 26 June 2025

And second, Charlie could easily have fallen a little bit differently and ended up impaled on wrought iron, so this seems like a very risky move. —Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 19 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from past participle of worken to work

First Known Use

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing wrought

• high-wrought
• wrought iron
• wrought up

Rhymes for wrought

• aught
• baht
• blot
• bott
• bought
• brought
• caught
• clot
• cot
• cott
• dot
• fought

Kids Definition

wrought

1 of 2

ˈrȯt 

past and past participle of work

wrought

2 of 2 adjective

1

: worked into shape by skill or effort

a carefully wrought report

2

: decorated with fancy designs

3

: beaten into shape by tools : hammered

wrought metals

4

: very excited

gets wrought up over nothing