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wring

[ring]

verb (used with object)

to twist forcibly: He wrung the chicken's neck.

to twist and compress, or compress without twisting, in order to force out water or other liquid (often followed by out): to wring clothes.

to extract or expel by twisting or compression (usually followed by out or from).

to affect painfully by or as if by some contorting or compressing action.

to clasp tightly with or without twisting: to wring one's hands in pain.

EXPAND

to force (usually followed by off) by twisting.

to extract or get by forceful effort or means (often followed by out).

COLLAPSE

verb (used without object)

to perform the action of wringing something.

to writhe, as in anguish.

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Wring is one of our favorite verbs.

So is skedaddle. Does it mean:

to run away hurriedly; flee.

to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.

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noun

10.

a wringing; forcible twist or squeeze.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English wringen, Old English wringan; cognate with German ringen to wrestle

Related forms

out·wring, verb (used with object), -wrung, -wring·ing.

Can be confused: ring, wring (see synonym note at ring¹).

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To wring

Example Sentences

Squeeze the bread to wring out the milk, then drop it into a mixing bowl.

If he does, the opposition will seek to wring concessions in exchange, such as a big paring down of his powers.

Dunk your mop or sponge in the bucket and wring it out thoroughly.

EXPAND

Squeeze the bread to wring out the milk, then drop it into a mixing bowl.

If he does, the opposition will seek to wring concessions in exchange, such as a big paring down of his powers.

Dunk your mop or sponge in the bucket and wring it out thoroughly.

Parents wring their hands over infant sleep patterns.

They wring their hands about how much money they are losing to bootlegging and counterfeiting.

Environmental groups are considering a major push to wring cash for ecosystem restorations from global warming legislation.

They are much more likely to wring their hands about the oil price and leave it at that.

Rinse and wring out the cloth two to three times, and continue wiping until you remove all traces of oil.

The second is to wring the maximum amount of useful work out of every unit of energy available.

But the bean counters in the executive suite remain determined to wring still more revenue from the aging design.

But it may have to wring more concessions from its employees and creditors.

Before placing it in the bin, soak your bedding in water, then wring it out.

But blaming it on nonexistent global warming is the wring option.

Drain the leaves again and wring out as much water as possible.

But they overpaid amid a scramble to buy independent funeral homes, and found that they could not wring big savings out of them.

For those who live here, this is a hard land with a hard history, from which they must wring a life.

Drain again and use your hands to wring out as much water as possible.

Once inflation gets out of control it will be harder to wring out of the system.

Hand-wash and wring dry to maintain the natural creases that give the skirt its shape.

Lilienthal doesn't wring such scenes, though he easily might.

Spray the solution or dip the rag into the cleaning solution and wring out.

When you wring all of the emotion out of the subject you are left with only fact.

Faculty members gnash their teeth and wring their hands.

They're also heavy, and they're a pain to wring out.

Otherwise, he wouldn't wring his hands so much in public over his conference-going.

They, too, seem to see a chance to spoil the peace process or wring concessions from the government.

The technology might one day wring more diesel fuel and ethane gas from hydrocarbon byproducts produced by oil refineries.

The only way to rack up chips is to wring it from gamblers on your casino floor or by courting lady luck and winning it yourself.

Remove to a kitchen towel, wring dry and thinly slice into a bowl.

The team is now working to pinpoint the amplitude and frequencies that best wring fluid out of rock.

But there is a limit to how much charm, and how many laughs, he can wring out of deadpan idiocy.

Purists may wring their hands, and the mix has caused a few dealers to leave the fair.

These days private-equity firms also look more to wring profits from improving the operations of their firms.

If you pick up composting material and can wring water from it, your compost is too wet.

Mac showed he could wring more laughs and more insight out of a single obscenity.

Humanity has gotten richer because new technologies have enabled people to wring ever more out of a given level of.

They wring their collective hands over the impact on the working population of having to care for so many retirees.

The underlying business model is not simply to wring more money from any one brand.

Spray the bedding with water to moisten it thoroughly or pre-soak it and wring it out before adding it to the bin.

Keaton, who can wring flustered comedy out of the mildest provocation, deserve better.

After all, to wring out inefficiencies and cut costs, companies have to make sure things are done a certain way.

If he would only keep one principle to himself he would be waylaid in an effort to wring it from him.

He has pledged to wring more efficiency from the bureaucracy.

Bortman has also directed the actors to wring every conceivable bit of angst and indecision out of the film's dilatory plot.

Mac showed he could wring more laughs and more insight out of a single.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

wring (rɪŋ)

—vb , wrings, wringing, wrung
1.	(often foll by out) to twist and compress to squeeze (a liquid) from (cloth, etc)
2.	(tr) to twist forcibly: wring its neck
3.	(tr) to clasp and twist (one's hands), esp in anguish
4.	(tr) to distress: wring one's heart
5.	(tr) to grip (someone's hand) vigorously in greeting
6.	(tr) to obtain by or as if by forceful means: wring information out of
7.	(intr) to writhe with or as if with pain
8.	wringing wet soaking; drenched

—n
9.	an act or the process of wringing

[Old English wringan; related to Old High German ringan (German wringen), Gothic wrungō snare. See wrangle, wrong]

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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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

wring

O.E. wringan "press, strain, wring, twist" (class III strong verb; past tense wrang, pp. wrungen), from P.Gmc. *wrenganan (cf. O.E. wringen "to wring, press out," O.Fris. wringa, M.Du. wringhen, Du. wringen "to wring," O.H.G. ringan "to move to and fro, to twist," Ger. ringen "to wrestle"), from PIE

EXPAND

*wrengh- "to turn," nasalized variant of *wergh- "to turn," from base *wer- "to turn, bend" (see versus). Wringer "device for squeezing water from clothes" first recorded 1799. Fig. phrase to put (something) through the wringer first recorded 1942, Amer.Eng.

COLLAPSE

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Matching Quote

"An actor rides in a bus or railroad train; he sees a movement and applies it to a new role. A woman in agony of spirit might turn her head just so; a man in deep humiliation probably would wring his hands in such a way. From straws like these, drawn from completely different sources, the fabric of a character may be built. The whole garment in which the actor hides himself is made of small externals of observation fitted to his conception of a role."

-Eleanor Robson Belmont

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