wrench
Use Wrench in a sentence
verb (used with object)
1.
to twist suddenly and forcibly; pull, jerk, or force by a violent twist: He wrenched the prisoner's wrist.
2.
to overstrain or injure (the ankle, knee, etc.) by a sudden, violent twist: When she fell, she wrenched her ankle.
3.
to affect distressingly as if by a wrench.
4.
to wrest, as from the right use or meaning: to wrench the facts out of context.
verb (used without object)
5.
to twist, turn, or move suddenly aside: He wrenched away.
6.
to give a wrench or twist at something.
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Wrench
is one of our favorite verbs.
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| to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about. |
| to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax. |
noun
7.
a wrenching movement; a sudden, violent twist: With a quick wrench, she freed herself.
8.
a painful, straining twist, as of the ankle or wrist.
9.
a sharp, distressing strain, as to the feelings.
10.
a twisting or distortion, as of meaning.
11.
a tool for gripping and turning or twisting the head of a bolt, a nut, a pipe, or the like, commonly consisting of a bar of metal with fixed or adjustable jaws.
Origin:
before 1050; Middle English wrenchen (v.), Old English wrencan to twist, turn; cognate with German renken
before 1050; Middle English wrenchen (v.), Old English wrencan to twist, turn; cognate with German renken
Related forms
wrench·er, noun
wrench·ing·ly, adverb
out·wrench, verb (used with object)
un·wrenched, adjective
Synonyms
4. distort, twist, warp.
4. distort, twist, warp.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To wrench
Collins
World English Dictionary
wrench (rɛntʃ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | to give (something) a sudden or violent twist or pull esp so as to remove (something) from that to which it is attached: to wrench a door off its hinges |
| 2. | (tr) to twist suddenly so as to sprain (a limb): to wrench one's ankle |
| 3. | (tr) to give pain to |
| 4. | (tr) to twist from the original meaning or purpose |
| 5. | (intr) to make a sudden twisting motion |
| —n | |
| 6. | a forceful twist or pull |
| 7. | an injury to a limb, caused by twisting |
| 8. | sudden pain caused esp by parting |
| 9. | a parting that is difficult or painful to make |
| 10. | a distorting of the original meaning or purpose |
| 11. | See also torque wrench a spanner, esp one with adjustable jaws |
| [Old English wrencan; related to Old High German renken, Lithuanian rangyti to twist. See | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
wrench
O.E. wrencan "to twist," from P.Gmc. *wrankijanan (cf. O.H.G. renken, Ger. renken "to twist, wrench," O.E. wringan "to wring"), from PIE *wreng- "to turn" (cf. Skt. vrnakti "turns, twists," Lith. rengtis "to grow crooked, to writhe"), nasalized variant of *werg- "to turn" (cf. L. vergere "to turn, tend
toward"), from base *wer- "to turn, bend" (see versus). Related: Wrenched, wrenching.
wrench
O.E. wrenc "a twisting, artifice, trick;" see wrench (v.). The meaning "tool with jaws for turning" is first recorded 1794.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
wrench definition
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Example sentences
He worked it down to the gum, and then with a wrench of his shoulder, he twisted it.
Let me throw another wrench into this whole discussion.
The disrupters can throw a monkey wrench into that finely tuned endocrine system.
Hold the tap wrench vertically as you cut the threads and back it out frequently to remove plastic chips.
Idioms & Phrases
Nearby Words
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