WRENCHES Synonyms: 73 Similar and Opposite Words

wrenches 1 of 2

noun

plural of wrench

as in twists

a forceful rotating or pulling motion for the purpose of dislodging something with a sharp wrench of the hammer I pulled the nail from the board

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in tugs

the act or an instance of applying force on something so that it moves in the direction of the force with one final hard wrench I was able to pull the cork from the bottle

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

wrenches

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of wrench

as in pulls

to move by or as if by a forceful rotation with one last sharp yank, he wrenched the lid off the bottle of ketchup

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as in bruises

to injure by overuse, misuse, or pressure wrenched her shoulder by all of that heavy lifting

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as in tears

to separate or remove by forceful pulling wrenched the post out of the ground

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

reattaches

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 wrenches

Noun

Engineers constantly tweak the system to throw new (virtual) wrenches in the cogs to keep its Super Cruise as up to date as possible with the oddest and unlikeliest scenarios. —

Kristin Shaw, Popular Science, 30 Apr. 2026 There are two tire changers, front side and rear side, who use air wrenches to loosen the single lug nut on the old tires and tighten the lug on the new tires. —

Walter Villa, Miami Herald, 28 Apr. 2026 The groove between these serves as an at-the-ready bottle opener, and within the frame are hex wrenches for 2-mm and 5-mm bolts. —

New Atlas, 10 Mar. 2026 Eight days after panels were removed by National Park Service staff using crowbars and wrenches, dozens of people packed a federal courtroom to hear arguments from the city of Philadelphia and the federal government. —

Liz Crawford, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026 Adjustable wrenches can round off the bolt head, making removal more difficult, Mansfield says. —

Olivia McIntosh, Martha Stewart, 15 Jan. 2026 At a minimum, keep a multi-tool, a few wrenches, and a pair of pliers in it. —

Rabekah Henderson, Southern Living, 2 Jan. 2026 Takahashi’s story delights in throwing more and more wrenches in the works with a growing cast of chaotic supporting characters (like the vicious Shampoo and the blowhard Tatewaki Kuno), and the anime adapts their antics as pastel-toned slapstick. —

Kambole Campbell, Vulture, 9 Dec. 2025 Instead of engineers with wrenches, its exam team of researchers aimed something far more penetrating than a flashlight at its aluminum skin. —

Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 4 Dec. 2025

Verb

And thus the audience is stuck with this scenario, which complicates in intensity and with a linguistic relish that has its funny moments (for some, anyway), but also features a lot of crudity that really wrenches you away from the typical landscape of the classy, urban American farce. —

Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Apr. 2026 In the sober light of day, Arthur takes one look at the leach before him and wrenches it from its prey. —

Ben Travers, IndieWire, 6 Nov. 2025 The director wrenches apart Ibsen’s terse and precise mechanism and makes room for a proliferation of arresting moments—caught on the wing in wide-screen images, thanks to Sean Bobbitt’s cinematography—that balance tragedy and horror with excitement and wonder. —

Richard Brody, New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2025 Gudsen, unmasked earlier as one of the two serial arsonists she's been hunting, unbuckles her seat belt and wrenches the wheel, sending them into a crash designed to kill her. —

Jp Mangalindan, Time, 15 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrenches

Noun

Off Campus uses the messy lives of these athletes to explore romance tropes like fake-dating plots, enemies-to-lovers twists, secret relationships, and more.

— CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 22 May 2026
The 52-year-old actress was the picture of elegance in a black gown that featured some twists by way of a one-arm design, cascading shoulder detail, dangerously high slit that soared up to her hip, cinched waist, and two huge floral appliqués.

— Christina Perrier, InStyle, 21 May 2026