as in inflicting
to cause to suffer punishment or vengeance for
wreaked their vengeance on those they considered enemies
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Recent Examples of wreaking
Playing as one of the two behind Dominic Calvert-Lewin in the 3-4-2-1 Farke has settled on, Stach’s got the defensive steel to bulk up the engine room out of possession, but the guile and stamina to roam forward, wreaking chaos in attack.
—
Beren Cross, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2026
Back in Peshawar, a stone’s throw from the hospital wing, some of the weapons wreaking new havoc along Pakistan’s mineral belt were laid out for CNN to see.
—Sophia Saifi, CNN Money, 3 Feb. 2026
This alliance, Hotez says, is wreaking immeasurable damage to Americans’ trust in science and healthcare.
—Will Carless, USA Today, 20 Jan. 2026
While people’s claims history, inflation, higher labor and construction costs play into increases nationwide, Coloradans face the additional burden of living in a state where the risk is high of catastrophes wreaking billions of dollars in damage.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 7 Nov. 2025
Almost serpentine in her shimmering elegance, Thompson’s Hedda glides from room to room wreaking social havoc with her guests, an old lover, and even her husband that will, ultimately, have tragic consequences for all.
—Literary Hub, 10 Oct. 2025
Across the industry, however, the coronavirus outbreak is wreaking economic havoc.
—IEEE Spectrum, 14 Apr. 2020
Beren Cross, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2026
Back in Peshawar, a stone’s throw from the hospital wing, some of the weapons wreaking new havoc along Pakistan’s mineral belt were laid out for CNN to see.
—Sophia Saifi, CNN Money, 3 Feb. 2026
This alliance, Hotez says, is wreaking immeasurable damage to Americans’ trust in science and healthcare.
—Will Carless, USA Today, 20 Jan. 2026
While people’s claims history, inflation, higher labor and construction costs play into increases nationwide, Coloradans face the additional burden of living in a state where the risk is high of catastrophes wreaking billions of dollars in damage.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 7 Nov. 2025
Almost serpentine in her shimmering elegance, Thompson’s Hedda glides from room to room wreaking social havoc with her guests, an old lover, and even her husband that will, ultimately, have tragic consequences for all.
—Literary Hub, 10 Oct. 2025
Across the industry, however, the coronavirus outbreak is wreaking economic havoc.
—IEEE Spectrum, 14 Apr. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wreaking
Verb
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Years before the building even took shape, the dialogue scripted a narrative where those suggesting teardowns were inflicting some cancer upon the urban landscape.—
Nate Freeman,
Vanity Fair,
6 Mar. 2026
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In past escalations and cross-border exchanges of fire, Pakistan and Afghanistan have both repeatedly claimed to inflicting heavy losses on the other side.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The other bill — Senate Bill 102 — would offer no incentives, instead imposing regulations on all large data center development across the state.—
Elise Schmelzer,
Denver Post,
1 Mar. 2026
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At the beginning of the revolution in Manbij, almost no one called for imposing Sharia.—
Anand Gopal,
New Yorker,
28 Feb. 2026
Verb
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SpaceX has actually recently floated the idea of a data center in our planet's orbit, which would involve putting something like a million more satellites up there.—
Monisha Ravisetti,
Space.com,
5 Mar. 2026
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Then in December, one of the town’s largest employers, Roseburg Forest Products, shut down its veneer mill, putting 140 employees out of work.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wreaking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wreaking. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
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