wrench

Meaning

Noun

1. A movement that twists or pulls violently; a tug.
2. An injury caused by a violent twisting or pulling of a limb; strain, sprain.
3. (obsolete) A trick or artifice.
4. (obsolete) Deceit; guile; treachery.
5. (obsolete) A turn at an acute angle.
6. A winch or windlass.
7. (obsolete) A screw.
8. A distorting change from the original meaning.
9. A hand tool for making rotational adjustments, such as fitting nuts and bolts, or fitting pipes; a spanner.
10. An adjustable spanner used by plumbers.
11. A violent emotional change caused by separation.
12. In screw theory, a screw assembled from force and torque vectors arising from application of Newton's laws to a rigid body.
13. (obsolete) means; contrivance
14. In coursing, the act of bringing the hare round at less than a right angle, worth half a point in the recognised code of points for judging.

Verb

1. To pull or twist violently.
2. To injure (a joint) by pulling or twisting.
3. To distort the original meaning of; to misrepresent.
4. To rack with pain; to be hurt or distressed.
5. To deprive by means of a violent pull or twist.
6. To use a wrench; to twist with a wrench.
7. (obsolete) To violently move in a turn or writhe.
8. (obsolete) To tighten with or as if with a winch.
9. (obsolete) To thrust a weapon in a twisting motion.
10. (obsolete) To disarm an opponent by whirling his or her blade away.

Synonyms

twist

spanner

wring

sprain

key

🔑

wrest

turn

yank

screw

wrick

tug

contort

warp

distort

pliers

pull

mangle

crick

put out

screwdriver

🪛

screw up

pull out

torsion

tool

break open

screw wrench

dislocate

jerk

snatch

dislocated part

prise

rick

bend

rip out

skew

switch

swivel

tear

tear off

tighten

tongs

torque

shlep

turn around

tweak

unscrew

veer

vice

whorl

wind

winder

screw tight

wring off

pull violently

crescent wrench

pain of separation

pain of parting

adjustable spanner

spanner

adjustable wrench

belie

break

cart

clamp

🗜️

clef

deform

dislocation

distord

drag

draw

force

garble

gouge

hale

haul

heave

heddle

jibe

job

jolt

make

misshape

monkey wrench

monkey-wrench

obvert

pervert

pluck

plume

quirk

schlep

screw-wrench

seize

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ɹɛnt͡ʃ/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: wrench

Inherited from Old English: wrenċ

Cognate with German: Rank

Inherited from Middle English: wrenchen

Inherited from Old English: wrenċan

Cognate with German: renken

In summary

From Middle English wrench, from Old English wrenċ, from Proto-Germanic *wrankiz (“a turning, twisting”). Compare German Rank (“plot, intrigue”).