wrack (redirected from wracks)

wrack ¹ also rack  (rk)

n.

1. Destruction or ruin.

2. A remnant or vestige of something destroyed.

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[Middle English, from Old English wræc, punishment (influenced by Middle Dutch wrak, shipwreck).]

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wrack ² also rack  (rk)

n.

1.

a. Wreckage, especially of a ship cast ashore.

b. Chiefly British Violent destruction of a building or vehicle.

2.

a. Dried seaweed.

b. Marine vegetation, especially kelp.

v. wracked also racked, wrack·ing also rack·ing, wracks also racks

v.tr.

To cause the ruin of; wreck.

v.intr.

To be wrecked.

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[Middle English wrak, from Middle Dutch.]

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wrack¹, rack [ræk]

n

1. collapse or destruction (esp in the phrase wrack and ruin)

2. something destroyed or a remnant of such

vb

a variant spelling of rack¹

[Old English wræc persecution, misery; related to Gothic wraka, Old Norse rāk. Compare wreck, wretch]

Usage: The use of the spelling wrack rather than rack in sentences such as she was wracked by grief or the country was wracked by civil war is very common but is thought by many people to be incorrect

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wrack²

n

1. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Plants) seaweed or other marine vegetation that is floating in the sea or has been cast ashore

2. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Plants) any of various seaweeds of the genus Fucus, such as F. serratus (serrated wrack)

3. Literary or dialect

a.  a wreck or piece of wreckage

b.  a remnant or fragment of something destroyed

[C14 (in the sense: a wrecked ship, wreckage, hence later applied to marine vegetation washed ashore): perhaps from Middle Dutch wrak wreckage; the term corresponds to Old English wræc wrack¹]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	wrack - dried seaweed especially that cast ashore seaweed - plant growing in the sea, especially marine algae
	2.	wrack - the destruction or collapse of something; "wrack and ruin" rack demolition, wipeout, destruction - an event (or the result of an event) that completely destroys something
	3.	wrack - growth of marine vegetation especially of the large forms such as rockweeds and kelp sea wrack seaweed - plant growing in the sea, especially marine algae
Verb	1.	wrack - smash or break forcefully; "The kid busted up the car" bust up, wreck ruin, destroy - destroy completely; damage irreparably; "You have ruined my car by pouring sugar in the tank!"; "The tears ruined her make-up"

Translations

wrack³ [ræk] N (Bot) → fuco m, alga f

wrack¹

n (Bot) → Tang m