wrack

as in to ruin
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of it's amazing how a raging sea can wrack a seemingly sturdy beachfront home

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of wrack Disney-style optimism is an attractive trait for someone in a generation wracked by doom and anxiety. Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 3 Sep. 2025 Here, tackling a masterpiece felt like a more complex, more nerve-wracking experience. Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 2 Sep. 2025 Air conditioning was probably a good idea for the three contestants who were formally dressed and answered nerve-wracking pageant questions. Karie Angell Luc, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025 After a week of monitoring their usual intake with smart bottles and fluid diaries, the volunteers returned to the lab to take part in the Trier Social Stress Test, which mimics a nerve-wracking job interview where participants give a speech and perform mental arithmetic while being observed. New Atlas, 21 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for wrack
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrack
Verb
  • Some hardware is brass-plated, which means scrubbing could expose the metal underneath and ruin the finish.
    Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 16 Sep. 2025
  • However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.
    Simone Jasper, Charlotte Observer, 15 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Some are value-destroying black holes; others are relentless value creators.
    Steve Denning, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
  • The first instance of NATO nations downing drones came last week, when Polish and Dutch fighters destroyed three Russian drones over Poland.
    David Brennan, ABC News, 14 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Last week the hacks finally returned Read’s SUV, but with its electronics system totally wrecked.
    Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025
  • Arguing further against a lopsided game, two Eagles defenders who wrecked Kansas City’s blocking in the Super Bowl have moved on.
    Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Deadly floods in Asia have devastated crops, crippling already fragile food production.
    Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 11 Sep. 2025
  • The glossy marketing doesn't include a footnote about trust funds, family support or the ability to absorb year-over-year losses that would devastate most working families.
    Elle Wang, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • What would shatter any other nation has become our daily broadcast.
    John Feinblatt, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
  • These hopes are shattered when a brutish stranger appears on the doorstep to take his family back.
    Leo Barraclough, Variety, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • An image taken on August 19 shows Israeli excavators and bulldozers demolishing buildings in Zeitoun.
    Zeena Saifi, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025
  • In a shocking and dominant performance, Lesnar completely demolished Cena, delivering 16 German suplexes in a one-sided beatdown to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
    Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • As the first half drew to a close, Calvert-Lewin towered above Kenny Tete to nod a ball down that Sean Longstaff would eventually smash off the crossbar.
    Beren Cross, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
  • In the worst-case scenario, a collision could smash a satellite into many more pieces of space debris, which each then go on to collide with more satellites, which produces more chunks of space junk, and so on and so forth.
    Keith Cooper, Space.com, 15 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Wrack.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrack. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.

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