wreak Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb cause to happen or to occur as a consequence
    bring; play; work; make for.
    • I cannot work a miracle
    • wreak havoc
    • bring comments
    • play a joke
    • The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area

WordNet

Wreak intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To reck; to care. Obs. Shak.
Wreak transitive verb
Etymology
OE. wrek to revenge, punish, drive out, AS. wrecan; akin to OFries. wreka, OS. wrekan to punish, D. wreken to avenge, G. rächen, OHG. rehhan, Icel. reka to drive, to take vengeance, Goth. wrikan to persecute, Lith. vargas distress, vargti to suffer distress, L. urgere to drive, urge, Gr. to shut, Skr. to turn away. Cf. Urge, Wreck, Wretch.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Wreaked ; present participle & verbal noun Wreaking
Definitions
  1. To revenge; to avenge. Archaic
    He should wreake him on his foes. Chaucer.
    Another's wrongs to wreak upon thyself. Spenser.
    Come wreak his loss, whom bootless ye complain. Fairfax.
  2. To execute in vengeance or passion; to inflict; to hurl or drive; as, to wreak vengeance on an enemy.
    On me let Death wreak all his rage. Milton.
    Now was the time to be avenged on his old enemy, to wreak a grudge of seventeen years. Macaulay.
    But gather all thy powers, And wreak them on the verse that thou dost weave. Bryant.
Wreak noun
Etymology
Cf. AS. wræc exile, persecution, misery. See Wreak, v. t.
Definitions
  1. Revenge; vengeance; furious passion; resentment. Obs. Shak. Spenser.

Webster 1913