wrest

to usurp forcefully; to extract by guile or persistence: wrest a confession from the suspect
Not to be confused with:rest – abstain or be relieved from exertion: Rest here awhile before traveling on.; left without further investigation: Let the matter rest.

wrest

R0183101 (rĕst)tr.v. wrest·ed, wrest·ing, wrests 1. To obtain or remove by pulling with twisting movements: wrested the book out of his hands.2. To take possession of forcefully; seize or usurp: wrested the islands from the settlers; wrested power from the monarchy.3. To gain or extract with persistent effort; wring: wrested concessions from their opponents.n. Music A small tuning key for the wrest pins of a stringed instrument.

[Middle English wresten, from Old English wrǣstan, to twist; see wer- in Indo-European roots.]

wrest′er n.

wrest

(rɛst) vb (tr) 1. to take or force away by violent pulling or twisting2. to seize forcibly by violent or unlawful means3. to obtain by laborious effort4. to distort in meaning, purpose, etcn5. the act or an instance of wresting6. (Instruments) archaic a small key used to tune a piano or harp[Old English wrǣstan; related to Old Norse reista. See writhe] ˈwrester n

wrest

(rɛst)
v.t. 1. to pull, jerk, or force by a violent twist. 2. to take away by force. 3. to get by effort: to wrest a living from the soil. 4. to twist or turn from the proper course, meaning, etc.; wrench. n. 5. a wresting; twist or wrench. 6. a key or small wrench for tuning stringed musical instruments, as the harp or piano, by turning the pins to which the strings are fastened. [before 1000; Middle English; Old English wrǣstan, c. Icelandic reista] akin to wrist] wrest′er, n.

wrest

Past participle: wrested
Gerund: wresting

Imperative
wrest
wrest

Present
I wrest
you wrest
he/she/it wrests
we wrest
you wrest
they wrest

Preterite
I wrested
you wrested
he/she/it wrested
we wrested
you wrested
they wrested

Present Continuous
I am wresting
you are wresting
he/she/it is wresting
we are wresting
you are wresting
they are wresting

Present Perfect
I have wrested
you have wrested
he/she/it has wrested
we have wrested
you have wrested
they have wrested

Past Continuous
I was wresting
you were wresting
he/she/it was wresting
we were wresting
you were wresting
they were wresting

Past Perfect
I had wrested
you had wrested
he/she/it had wrested
we had wrested
you had wrested
they had wrested

Future
I will wrest
you will wrest
he/she/it will wrest
we will wrest
you will wrest
they will wrest

Future Perfect
I will have wrested
you will have wrested
he/she/it will have wrested
we will have wrested
you will have wrested
they will have wrested

Future Continuous
I will be wresting
you will be wresting
he/she/it will be wresting
we will be wresting
you will be wresting
they will be wresting

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been wresting
you have been wresting
he/she/it has been wresting
we have been wresting
you have been wresting
they have been wresting

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been wresting
you will have been wresting
he/she/it will have been wresting
we will have been wresting
you will have been wresting
they will have been wresting

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been wresting
you had been wresting
he/she/it had been wresting
we had been wresting
you had been wresting
they had been wresting

Conditional
I would wrest
you would wrest
he/she/it would wrest
we would wrest
you would wrest
they would wrest

Past Conditional
I would have wrested
you would have wrested
he/she/it would have wrested
we would have wrested
you would have wrested
they would have wrested

Thesaurus

Verb

wrest - obtain by seizing forcibly or violently, also metaphorically; "wrest the knife from his hands"; "wrest a meaning from the old text"; "wrest power from the old government"seize - take or capture by force; "The terrorists seized the politicians"; "The rebels threaten to seize civilian hostages"

wrest

verb1. seize, take, win, extract He has been trying to wrest control from the central government.2. pull, force, strain, seize, twist, extract, wrench, wring She wrested the suitcase from the chauffeur's grasp.

wrest

verb1. To alter the position of by a sharp, forcible twisting or turning movement:wrench, wring.2. To obtain by coercion or intimidation:exact, extort, squeeze, wrench, wring.Slang: shake down.3. To give an inaccurate view of by representing falsely or misleadingly:belie, color, distort, falsify, load, misrepresent, misstate, pervert, twist, warp, wrench.Idiom: give a false coloring to.

Translations

wrest

wrest (someone or something) (away) from (someone or something)

1. To take someone or something away from someone or something by pulling in a violent, wrenching manner. The man has been hailed as a hero for wresting the gun away from the shooter before anyone was harmed. The officers wrested my son from me before I had the chance to run.2. To manage to obtain control or possession of something through some battle, struggle, or conflict with someone or something else. The rebels wrested power from the dictatorship after five years of war. The political party finally managed to wrest control of congress away from their opponents for the first time in 10 years. You'll have to wrest the kids away from me in the courts.3. To obtain or extract something, such as information, from someone or something, especially after much difficulty or persistence. We were finally able to wrest some answers from the spy we were interrogating. I've never been able to wrest any meaning away from abstract paintings—they always look just like splatters of paint to me.See also: wrest

wrest off

To take someone or something away from someone or something by pulling or prying in a violent, wrenching manner. A noun or pronoun is used between "wrest" and "off." He walked over to the headstone and wrested off the medallion that had been embedded in the marble. The man has been hailed as a hero for wresting the gun off of the shooter before anyone was harmed. The officers wrested my son off me before I had the chance to run.See also: off, wrest

wrest out

1. To remove or take away someone or something by pulling or prying in a violent, wrenching manner. A noun or pronoun is used between "wrest" and "out." He wrested the gun out of the attacker's hands. I managed to wrest the iron bar out of the cement before it had set completely.2. To obtain or extract something, such as information, from someone or something, especially after much difficulty or persistence. We were finally able to wrest some answers out of the spy we were interrogating. I've never been able to wrest any meaning out of abstract paintings—they always look just like splatters of paint to me. I wrested out a confession from Tommy after threatening to take his video games away for a year.See also: out, wrest

wrest someone or something (away) from someone or something

to struggle to get someone or something from the grip of someone or something. The kidnappers wrested the baby from his mother and ran away with him. The policeman wrested the gun away from Lefty.See also: wrest

wrest something off (of) something

and wrest something offto struggle to get something off something. (Of is usually retained before pronouns.) Somehow he wrested the hubcap off the wheel. He wrested off the hubcap.See also: off, wrest

wrest from

v.1. To obtain something from someone or something by pulling with violent twisting movements: I wrested the hammer from his fist.2. To usurp or obtain possession of something forcefully from someone or something: The duke wrested power from the monarchy.3. To extract something from someone or something by or as if by force, twisting, or persistent effort: In class I struggled to wrest the meaning from an obscure poem.See also: wrest

wrest off

v. To obtain or remove something from someone or something by pulling with violent twisting movements: The thief wrested off the hood ornament from the car. I wrested the car keys off him.See also: off, wrest

wrest out

v.1. To obtain something from someone or something by pulling with violent twisting movements: The farmer dug into the soil and wrested out a fresh turnip. The bullies wrested the book out of the little boy's hands and ran off with it.2. To extract something from someone or something by or as if by force, twisting, or persistent effort: I was finally able to wrest out some meaning from the jumbled essay. The police wrested a confession out of the suspect.3. To escape from something by pulling with violent twisting movements: The cat wrested out of my arms and jumped to the floor.See also: out, wrest

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wrest

wrest (someone or something) (away) from (someone or something)

wrest off

wrest out

wrest someone or something (away) from someone or something

wrest something off (of) something

wrest from

wrest off

wrest out

wrest

wrest

wrest

Synonyms for wrest

verb seize

Synonyms

verb pull

Synonyms

Synonyms for wrest

verb to alter the position of by a sharp, forcible twisting or turning movement

Synonyms

verb to obtain by coercion or intimidation

Synonyms

verb to give an inaccurate view of by representing falsely or misleadingly

Synonyms

Words related to wrest

verb obtain by seizing forcibly or violently, also metaphorically

Related Words