1
as in to pry
to draw out by force or with effort
the boy wrested the book out of his sister's hands
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
4
5
as in to grab
to separate or remove by forceful pulling
wrested open the stuck door of the cabinet
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wrest
In 2005, a handful of libertarians attempted, with little success, to wrest control of the government.
—
Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 21 Jan. 2026
The rise of hip-hop and the films of Spike Lee in the late 1980s and early 1990s forced a revival of Malcolm X, a reclaiming of him by Black America, wrested from his historical framing by the white mainstream, which during his time did not love him.
—Literary Hub, 21 Jan. 2026
Ja'Quan McMillian wrested the ball from Bills receiver Brandin Cooks as the two tumbled to the ground in overtime.
—Mike Sando, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2026
McMillian wrested the ball away from Brandin Cooks at the Broncos 20-yard line when a field goal would have won the game for Buffalo (13-6).
—Arnie Stapleton, Baltimore Sun, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for wrest
Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 21 Jan. 2026
The rise of hip-hop and the films of Spike Lee in the late 1980s and early 1990s forced a revival of Malcolm X, a reclaiming of him by Black America, wrested from his historical framing by the white mainstream, which during his time did not love him.
—Literary Hub, 21 Jan. 2026
Ja'Quan McMillian wrested the ball from Bills receiver Brandin Cooks as the two tumbled to the ground in overtime.
—Mike Sando, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2026
McMillian wrested the ball away from Brandin Cooks at the Broncos 20-yard line when a field goal would have won the game for Buffalo (13-6).
—Arnie Stapleton, Baltimore Sun, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for wrest
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrest
Verb
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Gangs have branched out beyond drug trafficking to extort money from small businesses and dominate entire industries, such as the avocado and lime trade.—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Feb. 2026
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That contact allegedly used the situation to extort the child and his brother for money in exchange for not telling their mother about the incident.—
Milena Malaver,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Italian skier Giovanni Franzoni, 24, earned a silver medal in his first Winter Olympics, finishing two-tenths of a second behind von Allmen.—
Paulina Dedaj,
FOXNews.com,
7 Feb. 2026
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The new Colorado Renters Rewards program will allow renters in these properties who make on-time rent payments to earn cash back and share in the property's equity, the governor's office said.—
Christa Swanson,
CBS News,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But looming is the question of whether the federal immigration officers who pulled the triggers in both cases actually broke the law, a question that will come down to complicated issues that are much harder to define than the outrage that prompted calls for accountability.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
7 Feb. 2026
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Morato also failed to connect with a golden opportunity to pull a goal back, shortly before Lorenzo Lucca finally did.—
Paul Taylor,
New York Times,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Similarly, Bad Bunny also stopped at a piraguas cart recreation and briefly grabbed a frozen dessert.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
10 Feb. 2026
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His piece of genius separated the sides entering the 84th minute but during a chaotic finale, the hosts conspired to grab defeat from the jaws of victory.—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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At some point, those fuel sources will be exhausted, no further energy will be naturally extracted from what remains within them, and those once-brilliant objects will fade away into darkness.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Feb. 2026
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But Trump’s habit of weaponizing US trade by imposing tariffs to extract concessions from allies has changed the risk calculus.—
Anna Cooban,
CNN Money,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Impacciatore, squeezed into a skin-tight Power Rangers suit, performed an entire clowning routine where she’s accosted by abstract embodiments of various winter sports throughout history.—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
7 Feb. 2026
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Sometimes, producers work with players to squeeze their take into the allotted time.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In response, Cecil Howard, the associate provost and interim dean of the law school, on Monday issued a message to students, obtained by the Orlando Sentinel, that said the word was not restricted and that the university’s leadership had not issued the directive.—
Natalia Jaramillo,
The Orlando Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
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Her boyfriend told detectives that Gutiérrez was hit by a bullet fired from a vehicle in a drive-by shooting, according to a summary of a police interview obtained by the Tribune.—
Madeline Buckley,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The result is many annoyed fan owners tugging vigorously on the chain, only to have their fan suddenly turn into an in-home airplane propeller.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
5 Feb. 2026
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After a few demonstrations, Destiny tugged the cord the way Carol showed us, and the bike roared to life.—
Hazlitt,
Hazlitt,
4 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wrest.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrest. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
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