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Wrack

//ɹæk// noun, verb

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Vengeance; revenge; persecution; punishment; consequence; trouble. archaic, dialectal, literary
  2. 2
    Remnant from a shipwreck as washed ashore; flotsam or jetsam. archaic, countable, uncountable
  3. 3
    dried seaweed especially that cast ashore wordnet
  4. 4
    Ruin; destruction. archaic

    "Therefore, in sign her treasure suffered wrack, Since Hero's time hath half the world been black."

  5. 5
    The right to claim such items. archaic, countable, uncountable
Show 6 more definitions
  1. 6
    growth of marine vegetation especially of the large forms such as rockweeds and kelp wordnet
  2. 7
    The remains of something; a wreck.

    "Lytle was already moaning in shame, fallen back in bed with his hand across his face like he'd just washed up somewhere, a piece of wrack."

  3. 8
    Any marine vegetation cast up on shore, especially seaweed of the family Fucaceae. countable, uncountable
  4. 9
    the destruction or collapse of something wordnet
  5. 10
    Weeds, vegetation, or rubbish floating on a river or pond. countable, uncountable
  6. 11
    A high, flying cloud; a rack. countable, uncountable

    "A dull wrack was drifting slowly across the sky, and a star or two twinkled dimly here and there through the rifts of the clouds."

Verb
  1. 1
    To execute vengeance on; avenge. UK, dialectal, transitive
  2. 2
    To wreck, especially a ship. transitive

    "Nor did the croakers have long to wait. The second night after the drowning of the mate the little yacht was suddenly wracked from stem to stern. About one o’clock in the morning there was a terrific impact that threw the slumbering guests and crew from berth and bunk. A mighty shudder ran through the frail craft; she lay far over to starboard; the engines stopped."

  3. 3
    smash or break forcefully wordnet
  4. 4
    To worry; tease; torment. UK, dialectal, transitive
  5. 5
    Alternative form of rack (“to cause to suffer pain, etc.”). alt-of, alternative

    "It marked her first performance in over four years after revealing that her body had been wracked with painful spasms following her diagnosis with the rare and chronic neurological disorder."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English wrake, wrache, wreche, from a merger of Old English wracu, wræc (“misery, suffering”) and Old English wrǣċ (“vengeance, revenge”). See also wrake.

Etymology 2

From Middle English wrake, wrache, wreche, from a merger of Old English wracu, wræc (“misery, suffering”) and Old English wrǣċ (“vengeance, revenge”). See also wrake.

Etymology 3

Late Middle English, from Middle Dutch wrak, ultimately related to Proto-Germanic *wrekaną (“to drive out”), the source of wreak and wreck. Doublet of vraic. Cognate with German Wrack, Old Norse rek, Danish vrag, Swedish vrak, Old English wræc); also compare Gothic 𐍅𐍂𐌹𐌺𐌰𐌽 (wrikan), 𐍅𐍂𐌰𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (wrakjan, “persecute”), Old Norse reka (“drive”).

Etymology 4

Late Middle English, from Middle Dutch wrak, ultimately related to Proto-Germanic *wrekaną (“to drive out”), the source of wreak and wreck. Doublet of vraic. Cognate with German Wrack, Old Norse rek, Danish vrag, Swedish vrak, Old English wræc); also compare Gothic 𐍅𐍂𐌹𐌺𐌰𐌽 (wrikan), 𐍅𐍂𐌰𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (wrakjan, “persecute”), Old Norse reka (“drive”).

See also for "wrack"

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