wreak (redirected from wreaks)

wreak  (rk)

tr.v. wreaked, wreak·ing, wreaks

1. To inflict (vengeance or punishment) upon a person.

2. To express or gratify (anger, malevolence, or resentment); vent.

3. To bring about; cause: wreak havoc.

4. Archaic To take vengeance for; avenge.

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[Middle English wreken, from Old English wrecan.]

Usage Note: Wreak is sometimes confused with wreck, perhaps because the wreaking of damage may leave a wreck: The storm wreaked (not wrecked ) havoc along the coast. The past tense and past participle of wreak is wreaked, not wrought, which is an alternative past tense and past participle of work.

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wreak [riːk]

vb (tr)

1. to inflict (vengeance, etc.) or to cause (chaos, etc.) to wreak havoc on the enemy

2. to express, or gratify (anger, hatred, etc.)

3. Archaic to take vengeance for

[Old English wrecan; related to Old Frisian wreka, Old High German rehhan (German rächen), Old Norse reka, Latin urgēre to push]

wreaker  n

Usage: See at wrought

Thesaurus

Verb

1.

wreak - cause to happen or to occur as a consequence; "I cannot work a miracle"; "wreak havoc"; "bring comments"; "play a joke"; "The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area" make for, bring, work, play create, make - make or cause to be or to become; "make a mess in one's office"; "create a furor" work, act - have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or expected; "The voting process doesn't work as well as people thought"; "How does your idea work in practice?"; "This method doesn't work"; "The breaks of my new car act quickly"; "The medicine works only if you take it with a lot of water"

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wreak

verb

1. create, work, cause, visit, effect, exercise, carry out, execute, inflict, bring about Violent storms wreaked havoc on the coast.

2. unleash, express, indulge, vent, gratify, give vent to, give free rein to He wreaked vengeance on the men who had betrayed him.

Translations

wreak [riːk] VT [+ destruction, vengeance] → hacer, causar
to wreak havoc → causar estragos

wreak [ˈriːk] vt [+ destruction] → semer
to wreak havoc → faire des ravages
to wreak havoc on sth → chambouler qch
to wreak vengeance on sb → se venger de qn, exercer sa vengeance sur qn

wreak

vt destruction → anrichten; chaos also → stiften; (liter) vengeance → üben (→ on an +dat); punishment → auferlegen (→ on +dat); anger → auslassen (→ on an +dat) ? havoc

wreak [riːk] vt (destruction, havoc) → portare, causare
to wreak vengeance on → vendicarsi su

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wreak [riːk] vt (destruction, havoc) → portare, causare
to wreak vengeance on → vendicarsi su