wreak

[reek]
verb (used with object)
1.
to inflict or execute (punishment, vengeance, etc.): They wreaked havoc on the enemy.
2.
to carry out the promptings of (one's rage, ill humor, will, desire, etc.), as on a victim or object: He wreaked his anger on the office staff.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English wreken, Old English wrecan; cognate with German rächen to avenge, Old Norse reka to drive, avenge, Gothic wrikan to persecute; akin to Latin urgēre to drive, push

wreak·er, noun

1. rack, wrack, wreak, wreck ; 2. racked, wracked, wreaked, wrecked.


1. visit, vent, unleash.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To wreaked
00:10
Wreaked is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
Collins
World English Dictionary
wreak (riːk) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
vb
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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

wreak
O.E. wrecan "avenge," originally "to drive, drive out, punish" (class V strong verb; past tense wræc, pp. wrecen), from P.Gmc. *wrekanan (cf. O.S. wrekan, O.N. reka, O.Fris. wreka, M.Du. wreken "to drive, push, compel, pursue, throw," O.H.G. rehhan, Ger. rächen "to avenge," Goth. wrikan "to
persecute"), from PIE base *werg- "to work, to do" (cf. Lith. vergas "distress," vergas "slave," O.C.S. vragu "enemy," L. urgere; see urge (v.)). Meaning "inflict or take vengeance," with on, is recorded from c.1489; that of "inflict or cause (damage or destruction)" is attested from 1817.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Papers carried lurid pieces describing the havoc it wreaked.
The stock market dive earlier this year wreaked havoc on the investment
  portfolios of many near-retirees.
But the damp coastal climate wreaked havoc with the bodies.
The corporate overlords would profit mightily off the carnage wreaked by faulty
  products flooding our villages and homes.
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