wrested

verb

past tense of wrest
1
as in pried
to draw out by force or with effort the boy wrested the book out of his sister's hands

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in extorted
to get (as money) by the use of force or threats vowed that the bully had wrested his lunch money from him for the last time

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3
as in earned
to get with great difficulty farmers who were used to wresting a living from the harsh land

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4
as in pulled
to move by or as if by a forceful rotation I need a strong arm to wrest the lid off this pickle jar

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5
as in grabbed
to separate or remove by forceful pulling wrested open the stuck door of the cabinet

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 wrested Another unidentified witness saw the struggle and wrested the knife from Rivas, according to police. — David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 3 Aug. 2026 In this case, the production company Embassy Pictures wrested control of Crimewave away from Raimi after a challenging shoot, leading the director to disavow the film. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 22 July 2026 And yet, no one has wrested the crown away from the attention king. — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 8 July 2026 Amid the fallout, Honarkar lost possession of most of his properties, including the historic Hotel Laguna, where a public scuffle had broken out in 2023 between his security team and guards working for the partner who wrested control of the landmark. — Los Angeles Times, 21 June 2026 That was when microbes wrested energy from light and, in the process, breathed new life into the world. — Quanta Magazine, 10 June 2026 Control was wrested back towards the end of the period, a sign of better things to come, even if that profligacy that has dogged them so much reared once again in stoppage time at the end of the half. — Matt Woosnam, New York Times, 28 May 2026 Women are wrested from their seats and don’t return. — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 Apr. 2026 OpenAI briefly considered plans to transition into a for-profit company in 2024, which would have wrested control from the nonprofit and kept it as a separate arm. — Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 24 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrested
  1. pried
  2. extorted
  3. earned
  4. pulled
  5. grabbed
  6. yanked
  7. squeezed
  8. wrenched
Verb
  • Across six Premier League seasons in the 1990s, Newcastle pried 12 different players from poorer sides, more than anyone else in that period.
    — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Security video of the early April 9 morning burglary shows three men entered the business through a broken window, smashed the machines with sledge hammers and pried out the boxes while a fourth man acted as lookout, the report said.
    — Dennis Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of pried
Verb
  • The police chief allegedly extorted the victim and the victim’s father in connection with the pending murder case.
    — Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026
  • The necessity of it to my defence against a more heinous charge could alone have extorted from me so painful an indecorum.
    — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 June 2026
Definition of extorted
Verb
  • Substitute Prisca Chilufya took a pass from substitute Evelyn Shores and scored the equalizer in the 72nd minute as Angel City FC earned a point in the standings with a 2-2 tie with the Reign late Sunday night at Lumen Field in Seattle.
    — News Service Reports, Oc Register, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Olay’s Micro-Sculpting Serum earned the Gellar stamp of approval thanks to its impressive ingredient lineup.
    — Kyra Surgent, InStyle, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of earned
Verb
  • Abello pulled one back with her first goal of the season in the fourth minute of second-half stoppage time.
    — Kyle Foley, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Police say Coffer was pulled to safety by his boat partner, who told police Simpson fled the scene and the boy was gasping for air.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of pulled
Verb
  • In an attempt to stop the dog attack, the owner grabbed a gun and shot the attacking dog.
    — Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Mulholland grabbed his assistant and told his chauffeur to head there.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of grabbed
Verb
  • The officer is also seen putting a woman in a patrol car — the same woman who is shown on the ground having her hair yanked by an officer.
    — Marvin Hurst, CBS News, 7 Aug. 2026
  • This bestselling line of classic creepy characters is yanked straight from your best memories of Halloween as a child.
    — Kelsey Legg, ABC News, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of yanked
Verb
  • But attorneys and housing advocates who work with struggling homeowners say household budgets are being squeezed from several directions.
    — Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Io is repeatedly squeezed and stretched by Jupiter and the gravitational pulls of neighboring moons Europa and Ganymede.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of squeezed
Verb
  • Miriam had given her a heavy coat and wrenched open the silver door.
    — Rachel Yoder, New Yorker, 2 Aug. 2026
  • On a moonless night, that Alpha team crept silently from the statue’s belly and wrenched open the gates of Troy, decisively ending the war in their favor.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 15 July 2026
Definition of wrenched

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wrest
wrested
wresting
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Cite this Entry

“Wrested.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrested. Accessed 12 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on wrested

Nglish: Translation of wrested for Spanish Speakers

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