wreck: Meaning and Definition of

wreck

Pronunciation: (rek), [key]
— n.
  1. any building, structure, or thing reduced to a state of ruin.
  2. wreckage, goods, etc., remaining above water after a shipwreck, esp. when cast ashore.
  3. the ruin or destruction of a vessel in the course of navigation; shipwreck.
  4. a vessel in a state of ruin from disaster at sea, on rocks, etc.
  5. the ruin or destruction of anything: the wreck of one's hopes.
  6. a person of ruined health; someone in bad shape physically or mentally: The strain of his work left him a wreck.
—v.t.
  1. to cause the wreck of (a vessel); shipwreck.
  2. to involve in a wreck.
  3. to cause the ruin or destruction of: to wreck a car.
  4. to tear down; demolish: to wreck a building.
  5. to ruin or impair severely: Fast living wrecked their health.
—v.i.
  1. to be involved in a wreck; become wrecked: The trains wrecked at the crossing.
  2. to act as a wrecker; engage in wrecking.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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